Jue stirred awake, his body protesting every movement. The strain from forcing open the Black Chamber—a high-level Kidō technique taught only to the most elite Shinigami in the Bleach universe—still gnawed at his muscles and spirit threads.
His breath came slow, but a thin smile tugged at his lips.
The scouting was worth it. I've learned enough for the next step.
The barren land around him was silent except for the faint whisper of wind. He tried to summon his Shunpo, but his spirit energy was too depleted. Without Kidō or Zanpakutō release, he was reduced to moving at human speed—though in this Marvel world, even that could solve most problems.
At least this isn't Hueco Mundo, he thought dryly. If I was in Las Noches right now, I'd be dead before I blinked.
He straightened his tattered clothes and began walking toward the faint hum of traffic he could hear in the distance—a skill honed during centuries of patrols in the Rukongai districts.
****
Not far ahead, on a lonely stretch of highway, chaos erupted.
An SUV roared past at full throttle, pursued by nine vehicles, each bristling with mercenaries armed with semi-automatic rifles. Bullets peppered the night air.
Inside the lead vehicle was Abner—once an elite operative in Marvel's Stryker's Special Ops Unit, now an X-Gene–awakened fugitive. Months earlier, Jue had heard whispers about him from young mutants at Xavier's school: a man whose physical abilities had been pushed beyond normal limits and who had the nerve to defy Stryker himself.
Abner's story was brutal. He had fled Negras after killing Stryker's infamous Hyena Squad in self-defense. His body, enhanced by the X-Gene, recovered quickly, but his conscience burned hotter than ever after seeing the horrors in Stryker's labs. Knowing the colonel's reach, he'd hoped to seek refuge under Professor Charles Xavier or even Magneto's Brotherhood—anything to avoid capture.
But Stryker wasn't a man to forgive or forget. Blood samples from Abner had revealed an enhancement to the X-Gene that boosted strength and resilience, something Stryker lusted after for his "Super Soldier" projects. With military and government contacts willing to look the other way, he unleashed an army of mercenaries to retrieve his prize.
****
Jue, still walking toward the sound of engines, saw headlights slash across the horizon. His eyes—sharper than any human's thanks to centuries of Shinigami training—caught the scene instantly.
Great… trouble.
Before he could decide whether to leave, fate decided for him.
A lucky shot blew out Abner's rear wheel, sending his SUV into a wild spin before screeching to a halt—right in front of Jue.
The door burst open, and a man with a striking resemblance to Captain America dove out, grabbed Jue by the arm, and dragged him behind the wreck for cover. Without missing a beat, he whipped up an HKM27 assault rifle and returned fire.
From behind the enemy vehicles, a commander barked through a megaphone, "Stryker will never let you go, Abner! You can't escape his reach!"
Abner ignored the taunt, but Jue's expression darkened. That name—Colonel William Stryker—was all he needed to hear. In the X-Men world, there was no mistaking that man: a power-drunk human supremacist who would dissect children if it brought him influence.
"...You're a mutant, aren't you?" Jue asked quietly.
Abner froze, eyes narrowing. "How do you know that?"
Jue didn't answer. Instead, he nodded toward the mercenaries. "These men work for him?"
"They're hired guns," Abner said. "Stryker's too scared to send his own squad after me again."
That was all Jue needed. His patience, already frayed from the earlier battle, snapped.
****
A single step—Shunpo—and he blurred toward the mercenaries. Even drained, his movements were a whisper of the deadly speed Soul Reapers were feared for in the Bleach universe. Against ordinary men who relied on guns, the fight was no contest.
By the time silence returned to the road, none of the attackers remained conscious.
****
Jue strode back, brushing off the dust from his Shihakushō. "You were one of Stryker's test subjects?"
"No," Abner replied, still gripping his rifle. "I was one of his sergeants—until my X-Gene awakened. I saw too much… the experiments, the kids. I had to get out."
"Then you know where his bases are," Jue said flatly.
Abner hesitated, then nodded. "Central Mexico. We weren't allowed near the main labs, but… I know enough. And I know they don't let anyone leave alive."
Jue's eyes lit with cold determination. "Perfect. I won't have to waste time finding my way back."
He reached down, plucked a working phone from the fallen commander, and dialed a familiar number.
"Professor Charles," he said when the line clicked. "I've found someone you'll want to meet…"
The call with Professor Charles Xavier ended in less than a minute. Even through the phone, Jue could taste the man's anxiety — sharp, clipped words hiding anger. The moment the line went dead, Jue casually crushed the phone in his palm, the fragments falling like dust. Without another word, he waved for Abner to follow and sat down at the roadside, gazing at the dark, open field ahead.
"Do you even know where we are?" Jue asked, his voice calm, almost bored, after recounting his day's events.
"Texas. Near the Mexican border," Abner replied, his tone flat — the soldier in him always answering directly.
"Texas? That's a long way from New York. Half an hour in the air at least." Jue let the thought trail off, his mind shifting inward.
The Ancient One's warning still gnawed at him. He'd been preparing for over a month, yet Hell kept finding ways to interfere. His body was still weakened from his last trip there — and that was only from tangling with Mephisto's forces. If Lucifer and the other three demon lords joined in, the battlefield would become a nightmare.
Hell was overcrowded with demons devouring each other like locusts. If left unchecked, they would become an unstoppable infestation. He couldn't kill the top rulers yet, but he could cull the numbers.
"You okay?" Jue's voice snapped Abner from his silence. He reached to pat the young man's shoulder, but Abner froze, eyes widening as if staring at his own death.
"What's wrong?" Jue asked, pulling back.
"Was that Professor X you called?" Abner's voice was urgent, ignoring the fresh bruise on his wrist from Jue's grip.
"Yes. The X-Men are on their way. We'll ride with them, and you'll guide us to Stryker's base."
Abner frowned. "You're… going to attack Stryker's base?"
Jue smirked, reading the hesitation in his eyes. "Attack, yes. Kill Stryker? No. And not too many of his men either. It's a foreign base doing dirty work. If Stryker survives, the Pentagon will blame him for losing control, not the mutants. No one in Washington will want this going public — too many careers on the line."
He leaned forward, his tone sharpening. "The so-called upper class aren't gods. They're businessmen. You think they'd fight for the people? Pay pensions for dead soldiers? They'll drop Stryker the moment he's bad for business. That's all you need to know."
Abner's silence told Jue enough — the soldier's worldview was cracking. Abner had joined right out of high school, still clinging to the dream of being a Captain America-type hero. But the military had shown him its teeth, and now Jue had ripped the blindfold off completely.
They didn't speak again until the X-Men's aircraft cut through the clouds and descended. The ramp hissed open, and Jue led Abner aboard.
Only three were inside: Ororo Munroe at the controls, Scott Summers beside her, and Hank McCoy — the blue-furred Beast — greeting Jue with a nod. Jue pushed Abner forward, then dropped into a rear seat without ceremony.
Once they were airborne toward the base coordinates, Hank, Scott, and Abner fell into a deep tactical discussion, with Ororo occasionally glancing back at Jue. She noticed his uniform — the once-imposing Death Tyrant garb — was torn and scorched.
"What happened to you?" she asked with a teasing smile. "Lose a fight?"
Though she had once mistrusted Jue's harsh, almost Gotei 13-style methods, training alongside him — and seeing his effect on the young mutants — had softened her opinion.
"Demons," Jue replied simply, adjusting a ragged sleeve.
Her eyes narrowed. "Demons? On Earth?"
"I went to Hell," Jue said bluntly. "Demons here wouldn't last ten minutes against me."
The cabin went silent. Even among mutants, "Hell" wasn't casual conversation. Hank's curiosity was obvious, but before anyone could press, Jue closed his eyes.
"I won't join your assault. I'll guard the ship. If you bring anyone out, tell them not to get too close to me. I don't pull punches by accident."
Scott and the others exchanged a look but said nothing more. The planning continued without him.
In the dim hum of the aircraft, Jue sat still, eyes shut — but his mind was already on the next move. This world was dangerous, yes… but it was also fun.