Chapter 118: The Origin of Death Energy - Meeting in the Psychic Plane
Anthony distributed the roasted venison between Wanda and Cassie, and Cassie even shared some with Susan, who was bound to a tree.
The motormouth Johnny Storm didn't get a single scrap of meat.
As the sky gradually brightened, Ryan still showed no signs of waking up.
Cassie asked Wanda, "Where are we going next?"
Wanda was silent for a moment before replying, "I want to find the other me in this universe. If there isn't one..."
If not, then they'd simply move on to the next universe.
Cassie hesitated for a moment before speaking. "Wanda, there's something I need to tell you. When we came here looking for you, I did see your name in the Sokovian police database. It was... another you."
"What?! Where is she?"
Cassie shook her head. "I only know she's not in Sokovia. I don't know exactly where she went—that information wasn't in the database."
Wanda's fingers, stained with Darkhold corruption, trembled as she asked urgently, "Cassie, is there any way you can help me find her?"
Cassie thought for a moment. "I'm not a hacker, but if we could access a more comprehensive database..."
The most comprehensive database would naturally be held by the United States government.
It was already noon when Ryan finally woke up.
He had a splitting headache—worse than downing a bottle of Asgardian mead.
After the pain subsided, Ryan noticed something fundamentally different. The death energy in his mind had transformed into something more like the cosmic energy from the Celestials. It no longer required intense concentration to mobilize—it responded as naturally as his own hands.
A thought flickered through his mind, and black mist suddenly materialized before Ryan. It instantly transformed into a sphere of blue flame that shot toward a nearby sapling, reducing it to ash in the blink of an eye.
"You're awake!"
Wanda walked over and stood before Ryan. Looking at the charred remains of the tree, she asked, "Do you know where you acquired death energy?"
Ryan said, puzzled, "I wish I knew. I didn't have it before I lost consciousness, but when I woke up, it was there."
Ryan understood that death energy belonged to Death herself—one of the cosmic abstracts, the embodiment of mortality itself, an absolute and singular entity.
Wanda speculated, "Before your confrontation with Arishem, during the zombie outbreak on Earth, the entire planet was enveloped by death energy. Only when enough of the infected were eliminated did the death energy gradually dissipate."
Doctor Strange had known about this, and Wanda, as a fellow magic user, had researched it extensively after obtaining the Darkhold.
Ryan countered, "Are you saying I was contaminated with death energy during my battle with Arishem?"
"It's entirely possible," Wanda nodded. "In our original universe, the death energy within you would have slowly dissipated and returned to Death herself. But you carried it across the multiverse. I suspect there's no Death entity in this universe."
Without a Death entity in this universe, Ryan's death energy had no destination, so it had taken root within him and refused to leave.
This hypothesis was plausible, but impossible to verify.
Ryan asked, "Could I become the new avatar of Death?"
Wanda shook her head firmly. "Absolutely not. Death is singular across all realities. You're only temporarily able to channel this energy."
Last night, chaos magic, death energy, and the golden cosmic energy from the Celestials had waged a territorial war within Ryan's mind. Although there was no clear winner, the conflict had helped Ryan gain conscious control of the death energy.
The death energy, without a proper anchor, needed Ryan's body as a vessel—a tenuous, symbiotic relationship at best.
If this death energy ever encountered Death herself, it would surely leave Ryan's body and return to its source.
Ryan didn't know whether this outcome would be good or bad, but for now, it was working in his favor.
He'd also discovered some of the more esoteric applications of death energy.
Cassie, who had been listening to Ryan and Wanda's conversation, finally relaxed. Seeing Ryan awake, her anxiety melted away.
"I'm so relieved you're okay, Ryan."
Ryan gave her a reassuring smile. Cassie then explained Wanda's desire to travel to the United States to access better databases.
Ryan pondered for a moment. "I don't object to returning to the States, but we're taking those two with us. They're our leverage with the Illuminati. We should avoid all-out war if possible."
Wanda simply wanted to find her family. If the Illuminati didn't provoke her, she had no intention of attacking them. She immediately agreed to Ryan's proposal.
The group then began their journey back to North America.
Thanks to Ryan's illusions, their travel was smooth and unimpeded. They soon landed in California on the West Coast.
The group first found a secluded temporary residence on the outskirts of Los Angeles, then assigned Anthony to investigate the location of federal databases.
Under Ryan's supervision, Cassie conducted a series of routine medical tests on Johnny and Susan.
Cassie had just drawn a blood sample from Susan's arm when Susan turned to Ryan, who sat nearby in his wheelchair, and asked, "Sir, are you looking to heal yourself? I know an extremely talented scientist who might be able to help you."
Ryan smiled knowingly. "You mean Mr. Fantastic—Reed Richards?"
Without waiting for Susan to continue, Ryan went on, "Listen, we don't want any trouble. Once we get what we came for, we'll leave immediately. I'll release you both and we won't cause any problems for your world. So please, don't cause problems for us. Fair enough?"
"But you killed Monica Rambeau."
Monica Rambeau was Captain Marvel—or rather, this universe's version. Carol Danvers's close friend. In the Sacred Timeline, Carol was Captain Marvel, but in this universe, that mantle had passed to Monica.
Ryan sighed. "Only one person is dead right now. If we keep fighting, more people will die. That benefits no one."
"Monica's death can't be in vain," Susan said stubbornly.
Those who became superheroes were invariably stubborn—determined to uphold justice even at the cost of countless lives.
But the question was: could they truly uphold that justice?
Ryan, unwilling to waste more breath, left the room where Susan and Johnny were being held.
As the door closed, Johnny, his hands and feet still bound, couldn't help but complain, "Why haven't Reed and Ben come to rescue us yet? I've had enough of this."
"Give them a little more time. I'm sure they'll find us," Susan said confidently, though perhaps she needed that reassurance more than Johnny did.
Meanwhile, Mr. Fantastic Reed Richards of the Illuminati was searching frantically but still had no leads on Susan and Johnny's location.
Reed arrived at Illuminati headquarters and sought out Master of the Mystic Arts, Baron Mordo.
"Mordo, can you use magic to locate Susan and Johnny?"
Mordo shook his head. "I've tried. Susan and Johnny are under some kind of mystical interference. The Sling Ring can't find them."
Scarlet Witch, knowing the mystic arts well, had cast a simple cloaking spell on both captives, concealing their whereabouts from magical detection.
Reed then sought out Professor Charles Xavier.
"Professor, I need you to use Cerebro to locate Susan and Johnny."
Professor Charles was elderly and frail, but for the safety of the Illuminati and the world, he finally decided to make the attempt.
He led Mr. Fantastic into the Cerebro chamber, preparing to telepathically scan for their location.
Professor Charles placed the Cerebro helmet on his head, gave Reed a reassuring smile, and activated the device.
"WHRRRRR... HUMMMMM..."
Cerebro activated, and countless human silhouettes immediately appeared within the enclosed circular chamber.
Professor Charles used his telepathy to sift through the millions of voices entering his mind, forcing himself to concentrate harder to find the specific minds he was searching for.
The figures in the chamber dwindled drastically. Finally, through Professor Charles's tireless effort, he managed to connect with Susan's consciousness.
"Susan!"
Susan, imprisoned in Los Angeles, was talking with Johnny when Professor Charles's voice suddenly echoed in her head. She was startled for a moment, then exclaimed in surprise, "Professor?"
"It's me."
Because Wanda had cast a cloaking spell on Susan, telepathy could establish contact but couldn't determine location.
Professor Charles was about to ask Susan where she was when his telepathic connection suddenly shifted, linking to another consciousness entirely.
"Professor? Professor!" Susan called out twice but received no response from Professor Charles.
"What's wrong?" Johnny asked urgently.
Susan frowned and shook her head, confused.
Professor Charles, equally puzzled, gritted his teeth and increased Cerebro's power, calling out again, "Susan? Can you hear me, Susan?"
"Professor Charles!" A strange voice suddenly echoed through Charles's telepathic link.
The abruptness of the voice nearly gave the elderly man a heart attack.
"Who are you?"
"Who I am doesn't matter. What matters is that I want to talk to you."
"Talk about what?" Professor Charles used conversation to keep the intruder calm while simultaneously using Cerebro to trace the connection, attempting to enter the stranger's mind directly.
Without waiting for a reply, Professor Charles successfully penetrated into the other person's consciousness.
"Hmm?"
A blank space materialized, and then a young man slowly appeared before Professor Charles.
He was shrouded in wisps of black mist, but his features were clear: a man in his early twenties.
"Who are you?"
The young man looked around curiously, then asked, "Is this the psychic plane? What a strange sensation."
Professor Charles nodded and said gently, "Young man, you seem reasonable. Why don't you release Susan and Johnny?"
"You can call me Ryan. I met Mr. Fantastic once before."
Ryan looked around curiously, puzzled as to why his psychic landscape was completely blank.
Professor Charles was momentarily startled, then feigned composure and asked, "You're from another universe. Can you tell me why you're here? Why did you kidnap Susan and Johnny?"
"We're simply looking for someone," Ryan answered frankly. "If the Illuminati hadn't attacked Wanda, we would have left already. Unfortunately, the misunderstanding escalated. We're only holding Susan and Johnny to ensure we have a chance to communicate with you peacefully."
"But Captain Marvel—Monica Rambeau—is dead."
Ryan shrugged. "The responsibility isn't entirely ours. She attacked first."
End of Chapter 118
[+100 Power Stones = +1 Extra Chapter]
[+5 Reviews = +1 Extra Chapter]
If you enjoyed this chapter, leave a Review!
P*atreon/Soulforger (40+ advanced chapters)
Buy me coffee - ko-fi*com/soulforger01