Marvel: The Awakened One

PFFT!

Sharon had just clinked coffee cups with Hawk and taken a sip. The next second, watching Hawk vanish into thin air right in front of her, she immediately spat the coffee she’d just drunk straight out of her mouth.

The next instant, Sharon shot to her feet, coughing as she rushed out of the café, pulling out her phone and dialing the New York SHIELD command center.

”Stan Lee Service Cen—”

”NYSL, Phoenix location, now!”

Sharon yanked open her car door and climbed in, rattling off her code name while ordering the command center to pull up Hawk’s phone tracking immediately.

She still didn’t know what had happened.

But one thing was certain.

Something bad had gone down.

Even though Hawk had disappeared in an instant, Sharon had still managed to catch the killing intent radiating off him in that split second before he vanished.

The question was...

Who the hell was stupid enough to provoke Hawk? The same guy who’d leveled Quantico, killed the Hulk at Culver Lake, slaughtered Dark Elves at Stonehenge, and flew to Mars once a week to spar with Thor?

Just then, the voice on the other end of the line came through urgently.

”Location acquired.”

”Where??”

”Empire State University.”

”Holy cow.”

The moment Sharon heard that Hawk’s location pinged at Empire State University, she sucked in a sharp breath. At the same time, a chill shot straight up her spine from her tailbone to the top of her skull.

Alright.

She took back what she’d just thought.

Those people hadn’t provoked Hawk.

They’d gone after Gwen.

Which meant they weren’t just stupid—they had a death wish for their entire bloodline.

What were they thinking?

Didn’t they know what happened to the last person who tried this? His whole family got wiped out.

Most importantly—

Even the old-timers on Capitol Hill and their deep-pocketed backers wanted to know Hawk’s secrets. But none of them dared to try going after Gwen—who, on the surface, looked like an easy target—because they knew better.

Because trying meant dying.

After all—

When a demon king willingly puts on chains, the smartest thing everyone else can do is leave those chains alone. Otherwise, the only thing you’ll unleash is the most terrifying version of that demon king.

And now someone had tried to help the demon king break free.

...

”Gwen, run!”

”You two go first!”

Inside Empire State University’s gymnasium, Flash Thompson shouted at Gwen and MJ—who had just come here looking for MJ—then charged straight at the three cold-faced, bald Black women rushing toward Gwen.

Flash Thompson might have been a school bully.

But in his mind, he was the bully. Which meant he was the only one allowed to pick on students. Nobody else could.

So back at Midtown High, the weaker students’ opinions of Flash Thompson had actually been mixed.

After all, a bully who only knew how to push people around but didn’t know how to protect them could never become captain of the football team, let alone lead his teammates to second place in the National High School Championship.

So, Flash Thompson didn’t hesitate. He charged straight at the three bald Black women.

WHAM!

The lead woman—cold and expressionless—swung the golden staff in her hand and sent Flash Thompson flying.

Flash skidded across the smooth gymnasium floor, his back slamming into the wall with a heavy thud.

The three bald Black women didn’t even glance back. They kept charging after MJ and Gwen, who were already running toward the back exit.

Their mission was simple: capture Gwen and use her to force Hawk to surrender his life.

No other reason.

Hawk had to pay with his life for Wakanda’s suffering and their old king’s death.

This was the will of the King. The new King.

These three bald Black women were members of Wakanda’s Dora Milaje.

They were even more elite than Wakanda’s Royal Guard. Every member of the Dora Milaje was female, and they were Wakanda’s finest warriors.

With the equipment and weapons they carried, any one of them could take down ten regular soldiers without breaking a sweat.

The three of them had actually infiltrated New York a month ago. Since then, they’d been watching from the shadows, waiting for an opportunity to catch Gwen alone and use her to control Hawk.

Yes.

Their target from the very beginning had been Gwen.

The reason was simple.

Hawk was too strong.

Terrifyingly strong. Suffocatingly strong.

Fortunately, he wasn’t without weaknesses. Wakanda had found Hawk’s weakness.

His fiancée, Gwen.

Compared to capturing Hawk—which had a success rate of basically zero—capturing Gwen and using her to control Hawk had a success rate of nearly one hundred percent.

Once they realized this, the Wakandans couldn’t understand why the outsiders who also coveted Hawk’s power hadn’t thought to use Gwen as leverage.

But the outsiders didn’t understand.

The Wakandans did.

Capture Gwen. Control Hawk. Kill Hawk.

The plan was perfect.

Unfortunately, over the past month, the three operatives sent to execute the kidnapping mission hadn’t found a single opening.

Because Gwen’s life was too routine.

Class. Lunch with Hawk. Class. Leave together after school. Go home together.

They’d considered launching a speed attack during class—grabbing Gwen quickly and getting her back to Wakanda before anyone could react.

But that plan was quickly scrapped.

Because Empire State University was right next to New York University. The moment they made a move, if the operation was exposed, Hawk—who was right next door—could probably get there in under five seconds.

So they kept waiting. Kept watching.

They’d thought today would be another disappointment. But then, suddenly, Hawk left NYU. And he didn’t wait for Gwen.

The three women—built more like men than women—practically vibrated with excitement.

This was their chance.

They didn’t hesitate. The moment they confirmed Hawk’s car had left NYU and driven a full block away, they immediately drove their vehicle straight through the entrance barrier at Empire State University with a loud crash. They didn’t waste a single second, driving straight to the gymnasium.

After getting out of the car, faced with the crowd of college students, and to avoid wasting time, they knocked out one student per swing with their staffs, not even glancing left or right as they made a beeline for Gwen.

Just like they’d done to Flash Thompson moments ago.

...

MJ and Gwen ran ahead.

The three women chased behind.

Just then, The lead bald woman, seeing that Gwen and MJ were about to push open the emergency exit and escape, transformed her Vibranium staff into a spear in an instant.

The next second, She threw it.

It hit its mark.

CRASH!

”Oh my God!”

MJ’s heart nearly stopped. She screamed, staring at the steel door that had just been pierced clean through by the Vibranium spear. She tried to pull it open again, but the spear had pinned the door to the ground. No matter how hard she pulled, it wouldn’t budge.

The next second—

MJ turned around and saw the three women charging toward them like panthers. Without thinking, she pulled Gwen behind her. ”Don’t be scared. I’ll protect you.”

”Thanks.”

The person saying ”thanks” wasn’t Gwen.

It was Hawk.

The moment Hawk’s voice appeared, so did his figure—as if ripples had spread through the air—standing in front of MJ, who was standing in front of Gwen.

Hawk, who had just teleported over and heard MJ’s declaration, turned to look at her and said, ”But my woman? I protect her myself.”

Gwen’s face lit up with joy at seeing Hawk.

But the three Wakandan women, who had been charging forward, went pale. Without a second thought, they immediately turned and tried to flee.

Alas...

Could they escape?

Hawk glanced at the three pitch-black, bald women trying to run and let out a cold laugh.

He didn’t even lift a finger.

With his telekinesis, the moment his gaze landed on the three bald women, they froze in place as if someone had pressed pause—still in mid-sprint, completely immobilized.

After doing that, Hawk didn’t immediately deal with the three women. Instead, he turned to Gwen, his lips curving upward slightly. ”See? I listened to you. I showed them mercy in Africa. And this is how they repaid me.”

Gwen met Hawk’s half-smiling gaze. ”I asked you to be merciful because I didn’t want you to lose yourself. But more importantly, mercy is precious. It’s not infinite.”

Hawk understood.

”So they don’t deserve my mercy anymore.”

”I told you to try being a good person. I didn’t tell you to be a doormat with no boundaries. And besides, you’re forgetting something.”

”Oh?”

”My grandfather owns a farm in Georgia, Hawk.”

Gwen said it with a smile.

Hawk smiled back.

With a single thought—without even looking—the three bald women frozen in place not far away suddenly bled from their seven orifices and died on the spot.

From start to finish, Hawk never once looked at the three women. He also never thought about talking to them.

After all, When you already know the answer, there’s no point in asking the question.

Wakanda had to be destroyed.

Hawk’s mind was made up.

Just then—

Sharon, who had been speeding the entire way, finally arrived. The first thing she saw was the three bald women—still frozen in place, blood streaming from their eyes, ears, nose, and mouth.

Sharon immediately recognized who they were.

Wakanda.

But...

How was this possible? The Big Five had coordinated a joint operation. Wakanda’s communications and transportation had been completely locked down. How had these three Wakandans gotten out? And how the hell had they made it all the way to New York City?

Sharon’s expression shifted rapidly as she looked at Hawk.

Just as she was about to speak—

Hawk beat her to it.

”Sharon, give Maria Hill a call.”

”Huh?”

”Tell Maria Hill to pull everyone out. Before I get there.”

”Oh God...”

Sharon drew in a sharp breath. Listening to Hawk’s ice-cold voice, she already knew what was about to happen. But she couldn’t stop herself from looking at him anyway.

”You’re going to—”

”After tonight, Wakanda will be no more.”

With that, Hawk looked up.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!

He shot straight into the sky, making no effort to hide his presence. He punched straight through the roof of Empire State University’s gymnasium, and once he reached the open air, a sonic boom erupted around him.

His body turned into a streak of light, racing toward Wakanda.

❁❁❁❁❁❁❁❁❁❁❁❁

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