Hawk held Jean.
Wanda held Billy and Tommy.
This was their first meeting.
Their eyes met.
Hawk's gaze did not linger on Wanda, with her smooth red hair and a hint of motherly aura, but instead fell on Billy and Tommy in her arms, who were also meeting him for the first time and were his bloodline descendants.
Indeed.
These two children had not inherited his power.
After all—
These two children were born after he proposed to Gwen, and only Gwen and his bloodline descendants were eligible to inherit his power.
Hawk did not intend to change this.
After all, it was his promise to Gwen.
Wanda faced Hawk's gaze on the children in her arms and stared straight at Hawk, as if trying to see through him, with her eyes seemingly glowing red.
Hawk snapped back to reality, looked at Wanda's action, and chuckled lightly.
Hearing Hawk's laugh, Wanda relaxed her brows, just as she was about to speak.
At this moment.
"Daddy!"
"..."
Hawk withdrew his gaze, lowered his eyes, and looked at Jean who called him daddy.
Jean's eyes were wide open: "Daddy, mommy and uncle just said you didn't care about us. I didn't even have a chance to argue, and then you came, how great."
After hearing those words, Hawk, whose neck was being held tightly by Jean, instinctively glanced at Pietro.
Pietro met Hawk's gaze, startled, and shifted his eyes upward, staring at the towering water walls on both sides to change the topic: "Wow."
Wanda did not avoid Hawk's gaze but stared back directly.
Their eyes met.
Hawk said nothing and instantly disappeared from Wanda's sight.
Wanda's pupils contracted, then she turned her head to look at the distant Hydra Base, which had become a ruin.
Entering her view.
Hawk appeared above the ruins with Jean in his arms, lowered his eyes, and scanned the ruins beneath him, as if searching for something.
Tightly holding Hawk's neck, Jean watched his actions and spoke sweetly.
"Daddy, what are you looking for?"
"Strucker."
Hawk replied.
Strucker's soul had not entered the Netherworld.
This could only mean one thing.
This guy wasn't dead.
Hearing Hawk's words, Jean blinked and then pointed to a spot in the ruins that seemed to emit a dim yellow glow: "Is it there?"
Hawk followed the direction Jean pointed to.
Entering his view.
A blue light flickered within the ruins, its color growing deeper and brighter.
Blue light?
Mind Gemstone.
Hawk's thoughts shifted, and he looked up at the sky.
Entering his view.
Above the abyss, following the roar of fighter jets, a S.H.I.E.L.D. Fighter appeared.
"Holy shit!"
"Jesus Christ."
"Central, did you see that?"
"We saw it."
At this moment, Sharon and Gwen in the New York S.H.I.E.L.D. Central command center watched the enormous water walls on the big screen, coughed lightly as their eyes flickered: "Can you get a clear view of the scene below?"
An agent in the S.H.I.E.L.D. Fighter said to hold on, while the camera under the fighter quickly focused on the abyss exposing the seabed below.
The next second.
The image focused successfully.
Pietro.
Wanda holding Billy and Tommy.
And Hawk holding Jean, all appeared instantly on the New York S.H.I.E.L.D. big screen.
Gwen's gaze fell on Wanda, who was holding Billy and Tommy.
Wanda seemed to sense something, looked up at the S.H.I.E.L.D. Fighter's camera above the abyss, and as if saw through it to lock eyes with Gwen.
At this moment.
Hawk glanced at the increasingly dazzling blue light in the ruins, reappeared before Pietro with Jean, and handed Jean, who was hugging his neck, over to Pietro.
Jean blinked.
"Daddy."
"You all go first."
Hawk said to Jean, who was taken back into Pietro's arms and looked at him, gave a small smile, then raised his head.
Sixth Sense—Teleportation!
"Whoosh!"
"Holy sh—"
"Raise yo—"
"Don't shoot, it's one of ours."
The S.H.I.E.L.D. agents in the fighter cabin, seeing Pietro and Jean appear in a flash of white light, instinctively reached for their guns, but luckily Sharon also saw the scene in the cabin and quickly stopped them from firing.
After teleporting Pietro and Jean to the S.H.I.E.L.D. Fighter, Hawk then looked at Wanda beside him.
Just as he was about to teleport Wanda, Billy, and Tommy away too.
Boom!
A brilliant blue light shot out from the depths of the ruins like a laser, heading straight for Wanda.
Hawk's eyes turned crimson.
Phoenix Beam.
Boom!
The scorching Phoenix Beam, at the moment the blue beam was about to hit Wanda, launched in a split-second and collided with the blue light.
The next second.
Hawk stood beside Wanda, multitasking, firing Phoenix Beam and blue ray while pressing Wanda's shoulder, teleporting Wanda, Billy, and Tommy to the S.H.I.E.L.D. aircraft above the abyss.
"Shoo!"
"Thick..."
"Again?"
Just having put down his gun, the S.H.I.E.L.D. agent exclaimed at the sudden appearance of Wanda in the cabin after the flash of white light.
Sharon at New York S.H.I.E.L.D. glanced at Wanda appearing in the cabin, then her attention was drawn to the confrontation below the abyss.
Below the abyss.
After teleporting Wanda out, Hawk took a deep breath, and with a loud bang, the Phoenix Beam overwhelmed the blue ray, and without losing momentum, it hit the ruins emitting the blue ray.
The ruins vaporized instantly under the scorching Phoenix Beam.
But...
A golden stream of light shot swiftly towards the S.H.I.E.L.D. aircraft above the abyss.
Hawk raised his eyebrows.
In the next second.
Boom boom boom!
The eight-thousand-meter high, erect water wall collapsed instantly, turning into heavenly waters, like a waterfall, striking the unknown golden object head-on with a bang.
Boom!
The speed of the golden unknown object plummeted, falling from the sky under the seawater receding from eight thousand meters.
But just as the unknown object was about to be taken back below the abyss by the seawater, it suddenly flashed with blue light, escaping the water wall, and again shot towards the S.H.I.E.L.D. aircraft above.
Then—
Bam!
Appearing below the S.H.I.E.L.D. aircraft, Hawk met the incoming unknown object, threw out a right punch, instantly sending the unknown object flying.
The unknown object rolled several times mid-air and halted, revealing its true form.
In sight.
Entirely in Vibranium color, without a face, its face entirely covered by a heavy face shield.
But on the face shield, two tiny blue light eyes revealed, seemingly its eyes.
And where not covered by Vibranium metal, it appeared jet black, a flowing kind of black.
Upon closer inspection, you'd notice this flowing black consisted of countless tiny nanomites.
But that's not the focus.
The focus is on the gem mounted in Hawk's chest, currently emitting a dim yellow glow.
The Infinity Gemstones, the Mind Gemstone.
Ultron?
Vision?
Hawk looked at the thing before his eyes and frowned.
"Hehehe!"
"Hawk Phoenix."
While Hawk examined the thing before him, it finally spoke.
The voice was hoarse, with a hint of metallic tang.
But Hawk recognized the owner of the voice.
Hawk raised a brow.
"Strucker?"
"Hehe, surprised?"
Before him stood not a human, but more like Strucker who transferred his soul through the Mind Gemstone mechanism into this imitation of Hawk's Holy Armor, with two tiny blue light eyes on the face shield staring at Hawk: "You were a step too late, you almost killed me."
Indeed.
Just a little bit.
Thankfully, his real trump card was never Wanda and Pietro.
Also, fortunately, seeing Hawk, he didn't risk anything and immediately retreated to the secret lab at the base's bottom level, having the researchers transfer his soul to this trump card.
Otherwise...
Strucker's mind flashed back to the moment his soul teleported there, witnessing his body and other researchers explode to death; then with a hoarse, spiteful voice, he eyed Hawk: "Unfortunately, I didn't die, so you must die."
Hawk chuckled upon hearing this.
"With your scrap metal?"
"Hehe!"
Strucker's laughter turned sinister.
"Scrap metal?"
"After I kill you, you'll know if it's scrap metal."
"My body was specifically developed for you."
"A Vibranium-crafted body."
"Endless Nanomites can heal my injuries swiftly."
"The gemstone provides me with infinite energy."
"I call it—"
"Sentinel!"
"..."
Sentinel?
Hawk listened to Strucker's somewhat excited and confident proclamation, reminding him of the real Sentinel claiming to wield the power of a million stars. Looking at Strucker, who was more like a blend of Ultron and Vision than Sentinel, Hawk chuckled without rebuttal: "Sentinel? Sure, as long as you're happy."
Strucker also laughed.
"I'll be happy, once I kill you, I'll be very happy."
"Alright."
Hawk responded with a smile: "I'll give you the chance to challenge me."
Then.
He turned to the S.H.I.E.L.D. aircraft hovering nearby.
"You leave first."
"Alright."
The aircraft pilot met Hawk's gaze, quickly increasing the engine power to leave.
Right then.
Strucker roared angrily.
"Trying to escape?"
"Dream on!"
"..."