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Chapter Twenty-Seven: A New Adventure
Let's go over it once more.
You were repairing your equipment when suddenly a device shocked you. Then you fell into a coma and remembered nothing, right?
William, Yelena, and Beta sat together, recalling the events of the day before. The first thing William did was use a special device to test their blood and make sure none of them had mutated. Fortunately, the device showed no trace of mutation, which brought them a wave of relief.
None of them could remember anything, not even William. He only knew that he was now completely blind. Yet somehow, without his eyes, he could clearly sense everything within ten meters around him. Every corner, every creature, every sound, every movement—it was all under his perception. A strange sensation… as if you were everywhere and nowhere at once.
When Yelena woke up, they discovered her body carried a dangerously high voltage. A single touch from her could deliver a shock.
Beta, on the other hand, had gained an extraordinary gift: she could slip into her own shadow and emerge from another. It was pure sorcery—but she couldn't bring anything or anyone with her. That made sense, since shadows had no material form. When she entered that shadow world, her body lost its substance; she became weightless, scentless, and numb. Even her wounds from the physical world disappeared completely inside the realm of shadows.
From that day on, Beta could always travel in William's shadow. An incredible ability for a spy. This sparked Yelena's jealousy—and even a little in William. But he was mostly relieved. He was no longer just a blind cripple. True, he could not see colors, and the world was still dark, but this new sense was far better than utter blindness.
The effective range of his ability was a circle ten meters in diameter, centered on William. He called his gift the "Third Eye."
Beta named hers "Shadow Beta."
And Yelena's ability made her a nearly unstoppable fighter in close combat—especially against the weak-willed. She was also immune to electric shocks.
Still, they all shared one problem: none of them had enough experience to fully control their powers.
Despite the surprises, they felt grateful. That very night they ate well and celebrated. Yet William and Yelena couldn't stay calm about their powers. William even slipped into comas several times due to Yelena's accidental shocks.
The next morning, they decided to train. Yelena needed to learn how to control the constant voltage in her body. Overusing her powers weakened her. That morning, staring into the mirror, she noticed wrinkles on her skin and strands of gray in her hair. Overexertion had drained her body's nutrients and energy to generate electricity.
William too suffered dizziness whenever he pushed his Third Eye too far. He couldn't rely on it all the time.
Beta didn't enjoy the shadow world much either. It was gray, silent, colorless. She would sometimes enter to rest, but staying there too long was unbearable. And moving through that shadow dimension was confusing; where there was light, there was shadow, and it was easy to get lost.
...
Meanwhile, important events shook the world.
The second group had fallen apart. Victor Von Doom, who had inherited both cosmic and mystical powers from his mother, went mad and unleashed chaos in New York. With his iron mask and green cloak, he attacked civilians in front of the Baxter Building. But the Fantastic Four—Mr. Fantastic (Reed Richards, with his elastic body), the Thing (Ben Grimm, with his rocky skin), the Invisible Woman (Susan Storm), and the Human Torch (Johnny Storm)—rose to stop him.
In the end, they turned him into a statue of living metal and became the heroes of New York. Doom's statue was later returned by a friend to his homeland of Latveria, where he was honored as both ruler and fallen hero.
...
The year 2006 arrived, and Christmas began.
William, Yelena, and Beta celebrated warmly, like a small family formed six months earlier. Though the Siberian cold limited their adventures, they cherished the joy of simply being together.
Late into the night, Yelena and William drank, fell into each other's arms, and collapsed on the bed.
The next morning, they awoke with pounding headaches. William lit a fire to heat water, and soon they were soaking in a steaming bath. Yelena rested her head on his chest, listening to the steady beat of his heart. It calmed her. With her finger, she tapped gently on his chest in Morse code:
"I love you.
Tomorrow, I'm leaving."
William wrapped his arm around her and sealed her lips with his.
"I know. I can't keep you by my side forever. You're not a bird to be caged. But remember this..."
He took her hand and pressed it against his heart.
"There will always be a place for you here. You are the first and the last woman in my life. Without you, in this cold, I'll be alone. I'll shiver, and I'll die. Promise me, Yelena… wherever you are, whoever you're with, whatever battles you fight or enemies you slay, never forget this moment."
They ended that beautiful day in each other's arms.
The next day, Yelena left, heading toward the Red Room.
When William returned to the cabin, silence filled the air. Heavy silence, sinking into his chest.
"Well… looks like it's time for me to start my own journey."
A month later, he packed his things and left Siberia behind, bound for Iran—ready to unearth the story from the blade of time itself.
...
Far away, in another galaxy, a silver light streaked across the stars like a falling comet.
It was the Silver Surfer, herald of Galactus, seeking the cosmic energy that had passed through these systems not long ago. He was gathering it all—for his master.
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