Chapter 205: New Phoenix
As the princess of Wakanda, Shuri had never been weak. She was equipped with advanced technology and her signature weapon was her hand cannon.
However, she knew she stood no chance against Erik, who had become the Black Panther. Furthermore, any sign of resistance would lead to the soldiers disregarding past loyalties and following their new king's orders without question.
Without hesitation, she turned and fled.
The chase lasted more than half an hour.
Erik had recently become the Black Panther and had not yet fully adapted to his new powers. Additionally, he wasn't wearing his battle suit, which meant he couldn't catch Shuri right away.
But he was undeterred. With a command, the entire Wakandan royal guard began the hunt.
At a crucial moment, the Hulk appeared.
Due to his refusal to comply with the Sokovia Accords and his attack on the island prison, Bruce Banner had become a wanted fugitive in 117 countries.
During this period, he had been hiding out in a small country, similar to Brazil.
Banner had kept in touch with the Avengers and Shuri. When he learned about the upheaval in Wakanda's throne, he realized Shuri was in danger and rushed to her aid.
The Hulk's attack was relentless, and with the soldiers unable to counter him effectively, Hulk easily rescued Shuri.
In a comfortable bed, Jean Grey slowly opened her eyes.
She was disoriented at first, only remembering that her vision had gone black, she had found herself in a strange arena, encountered a mysterious man, and had been knocked unconscious...
Jean: "!!!"
She was startled and jumped up, her first instinct to check her clothes...
Finding nothing unusual, Jean breathed a sigh of relief and felt slightly embarrassed. Why had she jumped to that conclusion?
"Are you awake?" Thor's voice came from beside her.
Jean was startled, instinctively launching a telepathic attack, and then...
"Ah!"
With a scream, Jean clutched her head with one hand, pointed at Thor with the other, and said in horror, "Who are you? Why do you have such powerful mental defenses?"
She was shocked, knowing that even if the professor couldn't penetrate her defenses, he wouldn't cause such a fierce backlash.
Thor looked intrigued. "Young Phoenix, you're really..."
"My name is Thor Odinson, Prince of Asgard. You can call me Your Highness or Thor."
"Asgard? Is that a real place?" Jean wondered aloud. "There aren't many countries with monarchies left, but I haven't heard of Asgard."
The world she lived in didn't include Norse Mythology.
"You definitely haven't heard of it because it's not a country on Earth."
Thor scratched his head and said, "Never mind, you can see for yourself."
He relaxed his mental defenses, allowing Jean to access part of his memories.
"The Nine Realms... Thor... The Avengers..."
Jean muttered, "So, I'm not just on another planet, but in a different universe? This Earth is no longer the one I knew?"
Thor nodded. "Yes, this is a similar yet completely different world... There are no mutants here, only people with superpowers. However, sometimes those with superpowers face situations similar to mutants. After all, fear of the unknown is a constant."
"But that's okay. I'm not like the professor. My philosophy is closer to Magneto's. In fact, under certain circumstances, I wouldn't mind adopting Apocalypse's methods."
Jean nodded.
In reality, she often struggled to understand the professor's philosophy. More than once, she felt the professor was too lenient with outsiders.
"Who is Apocalypse?" Jean suddenly asked, tilting her head.
"Just know he's a major antagonist. Didn't Apocalypse show up when you were summoned?"
"You really aren't a good person!"
Despite that, Jean found Thor intriguing.
The atmosphere became slightly awkward.
"By the way, do you know Cyclops?" Thor changed the subject.
"Laser eyes? Who's that?"
"An... individual who shoots red laser beams from his eyes."
"Oh, you mean Scott Summers! Yes, he's a rebellious boy who just joined the academy a couple of days ago and even burned down the professor's favorite tree. Why do you ask?"
"Nothing, just a bit curious..."
Thor now understood the timeline for this version of Jean Grey.
It seemed the plot was just beginning, and she was still a newcomer! No wonder she appeared so inexperienced.