Marvel: The Awakened One

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Crunch!

The crack of bones breaking resounded throughout the silent Oval Office. It came from the President’s neck, gripped tightly in Hawk’s right hand.

In an instant.

A moment ago, the President had been kicking and clawing at Hawk’s hand. Now he froze, his terrified expression fixed as all movement stopped.

Thud!

The President’s body hit the floor, limp and still. His eyes were wide open, staring blankly ahead.

He was just another President. Hawk had killed one before.

Besides, what could anyone do about it?

”...” Hawk calmly looked over the Secret Service agents who had just burst in, and the reinforcements rushing down the hall.

The lead agents stared at the President’s body on the floor. Their breath caught as horror swept over them.

Their eyes shot back to Hawk. Their fingers tightened on their triggers.

”DON’T SHOOT!”

”STAND DOWN!”

Right as the Secret Service agents were about to fire, a panicked shout rang out from a corner of the ruined office.

The agents looked at the white-haired old man who had shouted. Their eyes narrowed, but they felt a wave of relief and slowly eased their fingers off the triggers.

Hawk followed their gaze and saw the white-haired old man getting up from the debris-covered floor.

The old man stood, took a deep breath, and looked at the agents blocking the doorway. His voice was firm and commanding. ”Put your weapons down.”

The lead agent frowned, hesitating.

”Mr. Vice—”

”I SAID PUT YOUR WEAPONS DOWN!”

”…”

The agent stopped, met the old man’s sharp gaze, and finally obeyed. He turned to his team. ”Lower your weapons.”

Following their captain’s order, every Secret Service agent lowered their firearms.

The white-haired old man issued a second command!

”Get out.”

”…Yes, sir!”

The lead agent gave the old man a salute, turned—and led the agents out of the Oval Office. As he left, he pulled the broken door shut behind them.

Soon.

The Secret Service agents had completely retreated down the outer corridor.

The old man looked around the ruined Oval Office, taking in the destruction, then focused on the dead President at Hawk’s feet. He took a deep breath and looked at Hawk. ”My name is Baron Turner, Mr. Phoenix. Perhaps now, we can talk.”

Hawk met Baron Turner’s gaze and paused for a moment.

Under Turner’s watchful eye, Hawk walked to the Resolute Desk, set the leather chair upright, sat down, and put his boots on the desk. He crossed his arms and leaned back, looking at Turner.

”Alright. Let’s talk.”

”Name your terms!”

Baron Turner didn’t hesitate.

Quantico was destroyed. The Pentagon was gone. The President had been killed without hesitation. Any one of these would be a disaster. Together, they proved one thing:

Hawk Phoenix, a being they could not fight, was fully capable of wiping out the entire nation.

But after destroying Quantico, wiping out the Pentagon, and killing the President, Hawk’s rage seemed to have calmed for now.

That was why Baron Turner dared to mention negotiations again.

Fortunately... Hawk had given him an opening.

Turner, now over sixty and with decades spent in Washington politics, kept his eyes on Hawk. He ignored the fact that a mutant now sat in the seat of American power. ”Anything within my power, I will do.”

Hearing Turner’s declaration, Hawk sneered.

”Anything within your power, you will do. What about the things beyond your power?”

”I will find a way to make them happen too.”

”Ohh!”

Hawk gave a quiet laugh, his eyes cold as he stared at Turner. ”If I destroy all of you, everything you have is mine anyway. You have one chance to convince me, Mr. Turner. I’ll give you one minute to tell me why I shouldn’t kill you right now.”

With that.

He leaned back in the chair and closed his eyes, right in front of Baron Turner.

The atmosphere in the Oval Office froze solid once again.

Baron Turner, disheveled and with a scraped scalp from the blast, stood frozen on the blue and gold rug. His mind raced.

”...” Meanwhile, the senior officials and aides lying on the floor didn’t move a muscle. They barely breathed, trying hard to look like convincing corpses.

Once again.

The best actors are often found in politics. These senior officials were giving Oscar-worthy performances at playing dead.

Hawk couldn’t be bothered to call their bluff.

There was no point.

If he wanted them to live, they would. If he wanted them to die, they could keep pretending—once he left, they’d be real corpses.

The clock ticked down.

A minute isn’t long, but it isn’t short either. It went by in a flash.

Hawk leaned back in the chair, opened his eyes, and looked at Baron Turner. The old man stood silent in front of the desk, his body trembling a little, but he forced himself to stand tall.

”What’s wrong? Couldn’t come up with a reason why I shouldn’t kill you?”

”I apologize.”

Baron Turner managed a grim, strained smile. ”I can’t give you a reason or a promise I can’t fulfill right now. At least, not this second.”

Hearing that answer, Hawk paused.

”Why not?”

”Because I am only the Vice President.”

In the federal system, the President had real power. The Secretary of State had real power. The Vice President only had power if the President allowed it.

To put it bluntly, In the federal hierarchy—the Vice President was almost just a figurehead. But at the same time, he was the person closest to real power.

If anything happened to the President, the Vice President took over right away. No election, no campaigns. The transfer of power was instant.

Of course. That process took a little time. The transfer of power wasn’t official until the oath was sworn on a Bible.

Hawk, obviously, knew this perfectly well.

After all, he had been a law student. Before he awakened his Cosmo, his biggest goal was a lifetime seat on the Supreme Court.

So—

Hearing Baron Turner’s honest answer, Hawk gave a real smile.

”I like your honesty, Mr. Turner.”

”Thank you.”

”Don’t mention it.” Hawk smiled, then quickly changed his expression, locking his gaze on Turner. ”Xavier’s School. Where did the surviving mutants go?”

”The Alkali Lake Dam facility.”

”Who led the operation?”

”Ethan Brooke. The Second Deputy Director of Sentinel Services.”

”The same guy who escorted William Stryker to Quantico?”

”No.”

Baron Turner shook his head. ”That was Aditya, the First Deputy Director. But right after you left Quantico, Aditya had a ’sudden medical emergency’ and checked into Washington Memorial Hospital.”

Hearing that, Hawk couldn’t help but shake his head and laugh.

”Looks like this Aditya is a smart guy.”

”He is.”

”Too bad most of your people aren’t nearly as smart as him.”

Just look at what Aditya did.

Medical leave!

If the military won, as First Deputy Director, he was in the perfect spot to become Director of Sentinel Services.

If Hawk won, Aditya still survived. As long as Hawk didn’t destroy the planet, just staying alive was a win.

Listening to Hawk’s mockery, Baron Turner stayed silent for a moment before nodding.

”Yes. Aditya is very smart.”

”I like dealing with smart people.”

As he spoke, Hawk took his feet off the desk and stood up. He looked at Baron Turner. ”And as for you, Mr. Turner, because you were honest, I’ll give you one chance.”

Without waiting for Turner to react, Hawk’s voice turned ice-cold.

”You have three seconds. Anyone still on the floor will become a real corpse.”

Scramble!

The moment Hawk finished speaking, the senior officials who had been playing dead scrambled to their feet, as if coming back to life.

Except for one...

”...” Hawk glanced at a man lying perfectly still near the edge of the room. His eyes were squeezed shut, making him look more like a corpse than the real thing.

Hawk appeared right beside him.

Suddenly, the man on the floor felt a crushing pressure. He opened his eyes and saw the sole of a boot coming down on his face. His eyes widened in terror.

He instinctively opened his mouth to scream.

And then…

SPLAT!

”If you want to be a corpse that badly, I’m happy to help.”

Hawk sneered at the headless corpse at his feet. He turned, his cold gaze moving over the senior officials, then stopped on Baron Turner. ”I’ve given you a chance. Don’t make the same mistake General Thaddeus Ross made. Don’t mistake my mercy for weakness. Mr. Turner!”

Baron Turner’s face was completely serious. ”I give you my absolute guarantee on that, Mr. Phoenix. As long as I am in charge.”

”Your guarantee is completely worthless to me.” Hawk ignored Turner’s promise.

With that, Hawk looked up.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!

He shot through the huge hole in the ceiling he had made earlier, rocketing into the sky and hovering thousands of feet above the city.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!

A massive sonic boom shook the air above the ruined White House, tearing through the clouds like a meteor.

Thud.

Back in the Oval Office, Baron Turner’s legs gave out. He collapsed onto the floor, his back soaked in cold sweat.

…

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