Cassius never imagined he would meet Lorna here.
To be more precise, he truly didn't expect Lorna to even exist in this universe.
Polaris, Lorna Dane's power, was incredibly strong. Although she couldn't be compared to her father, the ability to control magnetic fields was terrifying.
Before coming to this world, he had once fantasized about having this power. After all, it could control anything made of metal. He could clearly remember the image of Magneto ripping the iron out of a person's body.
However, considering Ghost-Spider also existed in this world, everything seemed to make sense.
"Who are you?" Lorna looked up pitifully, her arms wrapped around her legs. Her eyes were filled with fear. Tears shimmered in her eyes, and her body was trembling slightly. She couldn't even bear to imagine if they were here to draw her blood for more experiments.
"Don't be afraid. We're here to save you. All the Hydra here have been eliminated," Cassius said in a gentle, low voice. This was a very vulnerable moment for Lorna. He spoke very softly, afraid of startling the young girl.
"They're all dead?" Lorna looked up, a glimmer of excitement flashing in her brown eyes. She had thought she would be locked up here and used as a test subject for the rest of her life. But she never imagined that someone would rescue her.
The moment she looked up, her eyes were drawn to Cassius's face. It was a handsome and gentle face, and she couldn't help but think he was good-looking.
"Yes. So you can rest assured." Cassius nodded, his tone reassuring. It must not have been easy for a young girl to endure so much fear. It was no wonder Polaris's emotions would be so unstable later in life.
"I... I can leave?" Lorna's eyes widened, and her voice became a little choked up. She had fantasized about this moment countless times, but it had never happened. Now that she heard the news, her heart started to beat faster. She couldn't stop her body from trembling. She slowly leaned against the wall to stand up, her mind filled with a longing for the outside world.
"Yes. We'll take you home." Cassius moved aside from the doorway and smiled at the disbelieving Lorna. After being locked up in a place like this for so long, freedom was probably the thing she yearned for the most.
"Home?" When Lorna heard that word, her eyes fell. Her initial joy was replaced by sadness. Pain filled her heart. That's right, even if I leave this place, I don't have a home anymore.
Where could she go? She would just be trading one cage for another.
"Cassius..." Gwen tugged on his sleeve, her voice low with compassion. "She's so pitiful!" She could feel Lorna's pain. Although she had her mother, Helen, she had been in pain when her father was in a coma. But Lorna didn't even have a home, which must be much more painful.
Cassius just nodded slightly. He was also racking his brain, trying to figure out what to do. He couldn't just leave Lorna with Yelena. The moment her powers were exposed, Lorna would be in a world of despair. The higher-ups would never let go of a power like hers. So there was no way he could hand Lorna over to Yelena.
"Cassius, how about we take her home with us?" Gwen hesitated for a long time, then tugged on his hand, her voice a little pleading. She couldn't take another person in at her house, but Cassius was different. He had a big house. There were plenty of rooms, so it wouldn't be a problem to bring Lorna back with them. Besides, with Cassius's wealth, one more person wouldn't make a difference.
"Me?" Lorna looked at the two of them with teary eyes, her face full of disbelief. She never thought that someone would be willing to take her in at a time like this. After all, she was already sixteen. Logically, most people would probably tell her to figure things out for herself.
Cassius didn't expect Gwen to say that. He had thought about reuniting Wanda and Lorna since they were half-sisters. And if Lorna went to his house, someone could watch over her. But he was just trying to figure out how to bring it up. After all, it wasn't appropriate to suggest bringing another girl home in front of Gwen. But if Gwen brought it up herself, it was a completely different story. If he could, he would definitely agree. This might even be a surprise for Wanda.
Tap tap tap...
At that moment, hurried footsteps came from behind them. Turning back, they saw Yelena jogging toward them.
"I've already contacted the higher-ups. They'll be sending people to take over soon. You guys should probably leave now." Yelena also knew that Cassius probably didn't want his identity to be revealed. Otherwise, she definitely would have heard of a person like him. If the people from above came to take over, things would become complicated if there was a confrontation.
"Then let's leave here first," Cassius nodded in agreement and stepped forward to help the frail Lorna. "Let's go, I'll take you home!"
Since he had already decided, there was no need to hesitate. When he helped Lorna, he realized she was incredibly light, not at all the weight of a normal adult girl.
"Okay!" Although Lorna didn't know who this man was, a sense of trust filled her heart at that moment. It was an indescribable feeling, as if this person would never lie to her. But as he helped her take a step, her legs buckled, and she almost fell to the ground.
Cassius saw immediately that this was a result of long-term malnutrition and blood drawing. She was having trouble even walking. Without hesitation, he scooped Lorna up into his arms. "Let's go. We should leave now."
With that, he casually opened an Inter-Dimensional Portal. The moment he and Gwen stepped through the golden ring of light, the system's voice rang out in his mind.
Ding!
[You have made Baron Strucker pay for his crimes and have rescued all the pitiful people in the lab!]
[Reward obtained: Magnetic Field Control!]
"Magnetic Field Control?!" Cassius froze. He really didn't expect to get this reward. This was the same ability as Lorna and Magneto. Although it was nerfed in the movies, this ability was actually terrifying.
But Cassius didn't focus on the reward. Instead, he looked at Lorna in his arms. In just a little over a minute, Lorna had already fallen asleep. She must have been too tired after being in the underground lab for so long, and her physical condition was very poor.
After all, those mad scientists must have been constantly drawing her blood. Eating a full meal was out of the question. With the way they treated their test subjects, it was a miracle she was still alive. If it weren't for Lorna's Magnetic Field Control, she would probably be just like the people in the cages. Once she finally relaxed, she immediately fell asleep.
"Poor girl," Gwen said, standing next to them with a look of pity. Although Lorna was about the same age as her, she was so pitiful. She had felt a little jealous at first, but when she saw Lorna's state, her jealousy vanished. The girl was too weak for her to feel anything but compassion.
Her good feelings toward Cassius were also elevated. Her request had been a bit presumptuous, but Cassius had agreed without hesitation. At least this girl had a home now.
"Imelda!" After opening the door and returning to the villa, Cassius placed Lorna in the guest room and called for Imelda. "Take good care of this girl. If she needs anything, give it to her."
"Yes!" Imelda nodded respectfully.
"Gwen, I'll take you home now." Cassius turned to Gwen and held her hand.
"Do I have to go back now?" Gwen was a little reluctant to leave. They hadn't seen each other for very long.
"Your parents must be very worried about you." After all, Gwen's parents were probably still looking for her everywhere. He couldn't keep Gwen here for his own selfish desires. Besides, they had plenty of time to see each other.
"I almost forgot!" Gwen slapped her forehead, her expression growing anxious. She had forgotten that her parents were waiting for her to come home. After being gone all night, they must be frantic by now.
Cassius and Gwen got into the Bumblebee and sped toward Queens.
....
"Still no news from Gwen?"
Helen wiped her tears with a handkerchief, her eyes bloodshot. They had been looking for an entire day, but there was still no news. It was as if she had disappeared into thin air.
Although they had pulled all the surveillance footage, the last thing they saw was a man dropping Gwen off at the station. Then the cameras suddenly malfunctioned, and they couldn't see any of the footage after that.
"I've had people look into it as much as possible. We should... get some news soon," George said, his head down, taking a deep drag from his cigarette. The ashtray in front of him was already full of cigarette butts.
He didn't talk much but just kept sighing. He didn't know if his daughter was in danger because of him. He had arrested too many criminals as a police officer. It wasn't impossible for someone to seek revenge. If that were the case, his daughter's fate would be grim.
"I told you not to do this dangerous job! If something happens to my daughter... waaaaaah," Helen sobbed uncontrollably. She didn't dare to imagine what her daughter had gone through.
She had told him before that being a police officer made it too easy to make enemies. Her daughter was so well-behaved; she would never cause trouble. Her daughter was just a weak and helpless young girl who couldn't even fight back.
"Dad, Mom."
Just then, a voice rang out from the doorway. They both looked up. The moment they saw Gwen standing outside, their eyes widened.
"You're back! Are you okay? Why didn't you come home last night?!" Helen rushed forward and grabbed her daughter's hand, looking her up and down.
George, who wasn't good at expressing his emotions, had red eyes. His mouth was slightly open, but he couldn't say a word.
"Did you get into trouble?" George asked, his voice choked up as he stepped forward. He knew his daughter wouldn't stay out all night on her own. The surveillance cameras in the surrounding area had gone out too suddenly. This had to have been premeditated.
"I accidentally ran into some human traffickers yesterday..." This was what Cassius had specifically told Gwen to say in the car. Her disappearance was too sudden to say she had just spent the night at a friend's house. He also knew that George was a police officer and would definitely check the surveillance footage. This excuse was the only one that could explain everything.
"Human traffickers!" When George heard that, his heart tightened. "How did you escape?!" He had seen how dark this world was. Many human traffickers would go to great lengths to abduct girls. And once they were caught, they would face a terrifying situation. They might never escape and could even be sold as body parts.
"Mr. Cassius saved me," Gwen said, looking at Cassius next to her. "Mr. Cassius used a lot of his connections to rescue me."
She knew that she would have to introduce her parents to Cassius sooner or later. Knowing her father's personality, he would probably try to investigate Cassius's background. So it was better to just tell them everything directly. And it was true that Cassius had gone out of his way to rescue her.
Hearing that, the frantic Stacys finally noticed Cassius standing next to them. The moment they saw him, they remembered that he was the young man from that morning.
"It was you?!" Helen's eyes widened. Although Cassius had spoken with certainty that morning, she still hadn't fully believed him. Even though George woke up right after Cassius went to the hospital room, she hadn't given Cassius any credit. But she never imagined that Cassius would bring her daughter back.
"Friend, thank you so much!" George stepped forward and shook Cassius's hand. Even though Cassius was just a young man, bringing his daughter back was enough for him to be grateful.
"You're welcome. I'm Gwen's friend, and it was the right thing to do," Cassius said with a smile. "I was actually planning on visiting you both today."
"Oh! You forgot to take these back with you!" Helen suddenly remembered. When the young man came over, he had left some things behind.
"These are gifts from our home in Japan, for the both of you," Cassius explained with a smile. Although people also give gifts in other countries, they don't usually pay as much attention to the customs.
"Thank you so much! Please come in and sit down. I'll make dinner right now!" Helen finally realized that this was probably the person her daughter liked. Otherwise, he wouldn't have gone to so much trouble to help find her daughter.
"Come in, come in." George also invited Cassius in. "You can sit down first. I'll go make a call to the police station."
After all, there were still many people helping him look for Gwen. Now that he had found his daughter, he had to let them know.
Cassius sat down on the sofa, warmly welcomed by the couple. Although Cassius offered to help with dinner later, Helen politely sent him back to the sofa, using the excuse that the kitchen was too small.
As for George, he grew more and more satisfied with Cassius. The young man was handsome and seemed to come from a good family. Most importantly, he was so devoted to his daughter.
At dinner, the Stacys served Cassius food from the dishes on the table. They also sensed Gwen's feelings for Cassius, but they didn't say anything, just smiled to themselves.
"I'll be leaving now. Thank you both for your hospitality." After dinner, Cassius politely said his goodbyes.
"Mom, Dad, I'm going to walk Cassius out!" Gwen said, her face flushed, as she quickly walked down the stairs with Cassius.
"I'm going to head back now!" Cassius was about to open the car door, but Gwen turned him around.
A soft pair of lips pressed against his. The scent of her perfume enveloped him. For a moment, the two of them forgot everything and embraced each other on the street, as if no one else was around.
"Ca...ssius!"
A familiar voice rang out. Cassius turned to look. Under a distant yellow streetlamp stood a figure in red. She looked at the two of them, her expression one of utter shock.
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