At a secret Vought International base somewhere in Siberia, the residual light of warning lamps flickered weakly against the metal walls.
As the residual energy of the world convergence swept past, the antiquated life-support system let out a series of violent screeches before shutting down completely.
In the darkness and dead silence, a violent tremor caused a dust-covered hibernation pod to buzz and rattle.
"Crack... Bang!"
The metal restraints snapped in response, as if they were nothing but fragile hemp rope.
Soldier Boy opened his eyes, cold fury and deep confusion intertwining in his gaze.
He tore off the tubes connected to his body and, filled with pent-up rage, kicked open the cell door that had imprisoned him.
He stepped out of the base, squinting against the blinding sunlight.
The sight before him, however, made him think he had descended into some absurd hell.
The sky was an eerie blood-red, black smoke billowed from a distant city, and the air reeked of rust and rotting flesh.
Several figures spotted him and lunged forward with feral roars.
Blood-red crosses were painted across their faces, their eyes held pure madness, and they brandished steel pipes, machetes, and even rifles.
"Get lost, you damn hippies!" Soldier Boy roared in disgust.
Steel pipes smashed against his chest and bullets struck his face, yet they didn't leave even a single white scratch.
He backhanded one of them, easily crushing the man's wrist, then obliterated his head with a single punch.
Red and white matter splattered all over him, igniting the decades of tyranny and brutality suppressed within him.
Like a beast breaking free from its cage, he tore the frail lunatics to bloody shreds one by one.
In his chest, that long-dormant power faintly glowed amidst the slaughter.
The long-lost feeling of absolute control brought him an extreme sense of euphoria.
Meanwhile, within an ancient ruin unknown to the world, a tall figure slowly awakened.
Her skin was covered in ancient, mysterious totems, and across her face was a slanted, distinct X-shaped blood cross mark.
She was also infected with the Crossed virus, but her deep eyes flickered with wisdom and cunning.
The Matriarch of the Crossed infected, an intelligent infected from the distant past, had awakened.
She greedily breathed in the air of the new world. Afterward, she headed to the city, following some instinct to swiftly break into a nearby abandoned university library.
With superhuman intelligence and a photographic memory, she frantically absorbed the knowledge of this era.
Pages flipped rapidly beneath her fingertips. Within a few days, she had completely mastered modern languages and complex social structures.
The scene shifted.
America, a remote rural town.
Several heavy trucks were parked horizontally across the town's entrance, forming a makeshift defensive line.
Queen Maeve leaned against a vehicle, panting heavily. She was bathed in blood, and black gore still dripped from the weapon in her hand.
Behind her, beneath the church's bell tower, huddled a group of shivering survivors.
The elderly, children, the former townsfolk—now, only terror remained on their faces.
"Carry the wounded inside! Anyone who can still move, reinforce the barricades!"
Maeve's voice was hoarse and exhausted, yet she remained perfectly lucid.
She organized the survivors, establishing a fragile base centered around the town's only stone church.
She knew this was merely a stopgap measure.
In the outside world, the number of infected was growing at a terrifying rate. Their defensive line could collapse at any moment.
During his aimless wandering and slaughter, Soldier Boy had destroyed several strongholds occupied by the infected.
He suddenly stopped in his tracks, jerking his head up to look toward a distant direction.
A strong, primal attraction emanated from that way.
The sensation made the power within his body tremble with excitement.
He temporarily set aside the thought of hunting down the bastard who dared to experiment on him—Homelander.
He needed to find the source of that attraction.
Following the feeling, he eventually arrived at the ancient ruins.
The Matriarch sensed his presence almost the instant he appeared.
That scorching, unrivaled power, burning like the sun, made her heart tighten.
She knew that resisting with her own strength would only lead to death.
However, instead of fleeing, she straightened the clothes she had recently scavenged from a mall and went to greet him.
"Greetings, mighty man."
She spoke in the English she had just learned, her voice carrying a slight, unfamiliar accent.
Soldier Boy stopped and scrutinized the unique woman before him.
The blood cross mark on her body proved her identity, but her eyes were entirely different from those of the lunatics.
"I can feel your power. It is like the sun god that guided us in ancient times."
The Matriarch bowed slightly, her posture humble, her words filled with perfectly measured flattery.
"I am a tribal leader from the ancient era, willing to submit to your magnificent power."
"Ancient?"
Hearing that word, a sickly fanaticism instantly erupted in Soldier Boy's eyes.
He was an ancient man abandoned by the times, and the woman before him was actually even older than he was?
He firmly believed that women were like fine wine—the older the vintage, the richer the taste.
A powerful, beautiful woman from the ancient era...
He could hardly imagine how exquisite the taste would be!
"Excellent. You're mine now."
He roughly grabbed the Matriarch's arm and yanked her into his embrace.
A gleam of cunning flashed in the Matriarch's eyes, quickly masked by submission.
She catered to Soldier Boy's roughness, allowing him to lead her deep into the library.
Two powerful forces and primal desires collided.
The ordinary infected wandering nearby seemed to sense the majesty of a king, retreating in droves and not daring to approach even an inch.
At Maeve's base, inside the church.
A survivor was tuning an old radio, hoping to receive news from the outside world.
"Bzz... Bzzzt..."
After a burst of harsh static, the desperate voice of a broadcaster suddenly rang out clearly.
"Emergency alert! Emergency alert! Codename 'Shockwave', former Vought International superhero, has been confirmed infected with the Crossed virus!"
"He... he's turning into a red blur of lightning, moving at extreme speeds along the interstate highway network!"
"Oh god... he's not just venting his urges, he's spreading it! He's actively spreading the virus!"
"I repeat! His route is..."
The broadcaster's voice trembled with terror.
Maeve's heart sank heavily. She snatched a highway map from a nearby table, her eyes locking onto it.
Shockwave's route was like a blood-red arrow, pointing straight toward their remote town.
Half an hour, at most.
This place would be overtaken by that red lightning.
She looked at the terrified faces in the church, all gazing at her with reliance.
She had to make a decision immediately!