Night fell over the city.
On the rooftop of his new apartment, Hawk sat with his back against a ventilation pipe, sweat still drying from his nightly regimen. He tugged at his shorts, grabbed his cola, and took a long swig.
Then he remembered.
Setting the can aside, he extended his right palm.
The faint patch of fresh skin Gwen had seen earlier—the one that betrayed his healing—was gone without a trace.
Ever since awakening his Microcosmos, every aspect of his body had transcended human limits.
Even without igniting his cosmos, his raw strength could crush stone, shatter walls, even bend steel. His speed, if he pushed it, could break the sound barrier. His physique could withstand blows that would kill ordinary men outright, and his recovery—though not yet true immortality—was beyond human. Fatigue and minor wounds were nothing to him.
The centrifuge shard earlier was proof. If he hadn't intervened, Gwen would've died instantly, her head pierced before she had the chance to scream.
But that wasn't what weighed on him.
He pressed his left hand against the spot on his right palm where he had felt the pain, frowning slightly.
The buzz of a ringtone pulled him from his thoughts.
His phone.
The very first call since he'd bought a SIM card.
"Hello?"
"…Yeah, it's me. You've arrived?"
"Alright. I'll be right there."
Click.
Hawk stood. A blur of motion carried him to the fire escape in a heartbeat, back into his apartment, where he dug five crisp hundreds from his pack.
His computer had finally arrived.
Ten minutes later, he stood at the entrance to Bridge Park, scanning the empty street before dialing the one number stored in his contacts.
A van's headlights flickered in response.
The driver's door opened, and a young Asian woman with long brown hair stepped out. Early twenties at most, holding up her phone in acknowledgment.
Hawk's brow arched.
Skye.
The future Quake.
She gestured toward him casually. "Better than Superman?"
Hawk chuckled. "Definitely."
Without preamble, Skye pulled a laptop from the van and handed it over. "Three years old, nine-tenths new. I reinstalled the system myself. Check it. If it's good, pay me."
Hawk accepted it wordlessly. Five hundred dollars wasn't small change, not for him. Part of him had even considered asking Gwen for a spare computer instead.
But a man had to keep some pride.
He opened the machine, tested its startup and basic functions, then closed it again. Satisfied, he handed over the cash.
Skye counted it quickly, then smiled, extending her hand. "Pleasure doing business."
"Likewise." Hawk clasped it firmly.
No banter, no small talk. Just a transaction.
She slipped back into her van and drove off, engine rumbling into the night.
Back home, Hawk placed the "beauty's laptop" on his folding table, next to the "beauty's phone" Gwen had forced on him.
Side by side, the devices seemed to stare at him.
Yeah… Gwen was better.
Wait. What the hell am I thinking?
He shook the thought away and connected the laptop to Gwen's phone hotspot.
Next step: Quantico.
Satellite maps glowed on his screen.
The base's secured zones were blurred out, but it didn't matter. One ruined building surrounded by sheet metal fencing caught his eye instantly.
Banner's lab.
Half an hour of research confirmed it. News archives, old blogs, and leaked files tied everything neatly together: the site of Bruce Banner's accident, now quietly quarantined.
The internet was ruthless in its reach. The world knew about the Hulk, about Banner's transformation, even about his past with Betty Ross. Gossip filled in the gaps, but Hawk ignored it all.
His focus was singular.
The lab.
The stones.
Gammaneon.
Elbow on the desk, chin resting in his palm, Hawk stared at the glowing map.
He would have to break his bottom line.
He had no money—and even if he did, Quantico wasn't selling.
But he needed the stones.
For his Cloth.
There was only one road left: take them.
And that was the difference.
If he stole Vibranium from Wakanda, the fallout wouldn't be his alone. The great powers of the world would never let Wakanda hoard it quietly; sooner or later, pressure from above would force them to share.
Quantico, though…
That was different.
But no matter.
His gaze sharpened, locked onto the ruins marked on the satellite feed.
The Gammaneon stones.
He would have them.
…
(End of Chapter)
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