"This isn't an Infinity Stone."
The Ancient One gently placed the glowing blue cube on the table before her. Her expression was calm, but her attention to the object was unmistakable.
Su Ming was at Kamar-Taj.
With Red Skull out of the picture for now, he had some time before Howard finished the atomic bomb.
He'd come straight to the Ancient One, asking her to examine the Cosmic Cube and, if possible, extract the Space Stone.
But her answer threw him off.
If this blue cube wasn't the Tesseract…
Su Ming already knew his Earth-40K wasn't the MCU. Running into Kang the Conqueror during World War II was proof enough.
The plot felt MCU-like at times, but it veered sharply in odd directions.
He had a guess about what this was, and if correct, it was indeed worth the Ancient One's caution.
"Is this the Cosmic Cube?"
The Ancient One nodded, then shook her head. "I'm not sure what you mean by 'Tesseract.' Perhaps it's a shell the Space Stone created. But what we're looking at is an incomplete Cosmic Cube."
Cube, Tesseract—easy to mix up, thanks to the MCU's influence.
In the comics, the Space Stone was purple and unrelated to any blue cube.
Earth-40K seemed to blend MCU and comic elements, making things murky.
The Cosmic Cube's origin traced back to the Beyonders.
Unable to leave the Marvel multiverse themselves, they wanted all life to have infinite potential, hoping someone might escape and explore beyond.
So, they used their cosmic authority to create a backdoor for all beings.
The Cube's power defied imagination. It could forge new multiverses or reshape existing ones.
With a complete Cosmic Cube, its wielder could turn their deepest desires into reality.
Control elements, manipulate time, rewrite logic, erase existence—any impossible idea could be realized.
If Su Ming wanted to turn Marvel into a wuxia world, he could. Everyone riding qi-powered horses? No problem.
Cosmic Cubes were sentient, with their own personalities and agendas.
Su Ming knew of four: the Skrull-born "World Shaper," Earth's "Kubik," the "Beyonder" born from the Beyonders' realm and Earth, and "Kosmos," formed from the Beyonder and Molecule Man.
The question was: was this Cube one of those? Or an unknown fifth?
"It's just a proto-form or fragment—wildly incomplete. No sentience, barely any energy, just animalistic instincts," the Ancient One said, delicately touching the Cube, her hands shielded with magic, like petting a porcupine.
"How long until it matures?" Su Ming asked, face serious.
"Maybe a day, maybe ten thousand years. These are near-extra-dimensional rules, with unknown energy types. I can't predict," she replied, the Cube pulsing faintly in her hands.
"I wanted the Space Stone to boost my abilities. Instead, I got a hot potato we can't even use yet," Su Ming said, shaking his head.
"You want an Infinity Stone? Gathering them is dangerous, but you're qualified to guard one. How about the Time Stone?" the Ancient One hinted.
"…Gotta go. School business," Su Ming said, bolting. He'd stall as long as possible, already brainstorming ways to extend her life.
She was the best Supreme Sorcerer.
The Ancient One watched him slip out and soar into the sky, then turned to the Cube, contacting the Vishanti for answers. Why was this thing on Earth?
Creating a Cosmic Cube required a stable energy field and a rift to the Beyonders' dimension.
Extradimensional energy would fill the field, transforming it into a perfect cube, its infinite power fueled by that energy.
That was the Cube's essence—a higher-dimensional concept born from dimensional intersections.
Was this Cube Earth's creation, or part of someone's scheme? The Ancient One had to prepare.
Events unfolded as Su Ming expected. Howard built the atomic bomb quickly.
But he hit a snag: his equations showed the bomb was too powerful.
The military wanted to eliminate enemies, not take a bite out of Earth like an apple.
So, he explored nuclear fusion but couldn't control the energy.
He started hunting for a new element to replace uranium and plutonium—cleaner, more controllable.
Su Ming visited Stark Mahjong House a few times, but Howard never showed.
The place wasn't open to the public, just Su Ming and a few servants, like a haunted house. He decided to return to school and hang with the girls.
Another issue lingered.
If this was the Cosmic Cube, where was the Space Stone?
How did Zola extract energy from the Cube for weapons?
Japan took two new atomic bombs—pale blue mushroom clouds, terrifyingly powerful.
Wolverine, in Japan, caught in the blast, huddled with a Japanese officer in a converted dry well, trembling.
Japan surrendered. The war ended.
Howard finally played mahjong. With the war over, he, Su Ming, Steve, and Bucky sat at the table.
He ignored secrecy protocols, spilling everything.
The new element wasn't natural—created via particle collider, with help from other scientists.
A young scientist couple named Xavier gave Howard major assistance.
To thank them indirectly, he bought their foam fire-extinguishing tech for a fortune.
It was valuable, but not that valuable.
Howard's gratitude was always roundabout.
The Xaviers used the money to buy a Westchester estate, where they had a son, Charles.
Whether due to exposure to Howard's experiments during pregnancy, Charles seemed… different from birth.
Steve was in high spirits. The war was over, and he had a girlfriend.
Old Man Roosevelt met him at the White House, pinning a big medal on Captain America amid flashing cameras.
But Peggy's mood was sour. With the war done, rich boys who dodged combat now flooded the SSR for clout.
It was a stepping stone to the CIA or military-political circles. After defeating Hydra, the SSR was hot, no longer secret.
Phillips, overwhelmed by shocks, retired. A new director took over.
Peggy felt pushed out. Soon, she'd be fetching tea. Men were back from the front; women were expected to step aside.
That was the era—traditional values saw women as nannies or clerks. Even secretaries were deemed "improper."
Su Ming could help, but why bother?
The SSR wasn't worth clinging to. Better to retire with Steve and Bucky, live quietly.
But Bucky actually retired, planning to travel the world to "grow stronger."
He said almost losing Steve made him feel powerless, so he wanted to learn new skills.
Su Ming suspected it was really because he couldn't stand Steve and Peggy's lovey-dovey displays and wanted to wander.
After some thought, Su Ming pulled strings with the Ancient One to get Bucky into Kunlun.
Bucky was meant to be an "Iron Fist." Without the torture or metal arm, his combat ability needed a boost.
Snark alone wouldn't cut it, especially without a straight man to riff off.
So, Su Ming aimed to make Bucky the Iron Fist. No need for the leech serum—mastering chi could grant longevity too.
It was November 1945, another winter. Today's plan: mahjong, a feast, and Bucky's send-off.
They drank and laughed late into the night. Gin picked up a reeking Su Ming and took him back to company HQ.
He'd head to school tomorrow. Had Ciri been running off again?
Her Witcher instincts were kicking in, scouring the world for monsters to hunt. But New York had Su Ming, Mihal, and the Sanctum Sanctorum.
Even in Marvel, monsters weren't keen on New York right now.
Ciri popped back to the Witcher world, even visited Geralt, who'd somehow ended up in another world, hunting dragons daily.
Su Ming wouldn't change her nature. If Ciri didn't hunt monsters, she wouldn't be Ciri. Traveling worlds to slay beasts was her calling.
He planned to live quietly, but the next morning, the Ancient One's sudden arrival shattered his routine.