Black Widow smiled faintly, shaking her head as she began to recall:
"When I went to the City of the Gods, the air was thick with smoke. You could still see bodies hanging beneath the broken overpasses."
"But his little flower shop…" She paused, her voice softening. "It was like the only peaceful paradise in that entire ruin of a city."
"He was just an ordinary gardener—watering and pruning, quietly tending to life in a place filled with death. He never even glanced at the chaos outside."
"If it weren't for me, probably… those flowers and plants would have been his entire world."
As she spoke, she couldn't resist sneaking a glance at Wanda, Helen, and Daisy.
The women fell silent, eyes slightly unfocused, as if picturing it in their minds.
How could someone capable of wielding divine power—someone who had fought gods and monsters—live so quietly, so peacefully, as a man among flowers?
No one among them could do that.
Especially not Quicksilver, who was already fidgeting impatiently.
He couldn't stand still for five seconds, much less water plants all day. His dream was to become a superhero like Lock—asking him to prune a bonsai would be worse than death.
He scratched his silver hair and asked, "So… what kind of flowers did the idol grow?"
"He saved my life, and I haven't even thanked him yet. If he likes plants, I'll find the rarest ones and bring them to him myself."
"Uh…"
Black Widow froze for a second.
It hit her that Lock had given her countless gifts—restorative serums, Asgardian energy tech, even the resurrection of teammates. But she had never once given him anything in return.
She didn't even know what his favorite flowers were.
She sighed quietly, feeling a twinge of guilt. "I don't know. I never asked, and he never said. The flowers he kept looked… very ordinary."
Then, a calm, teasing voice cut through the air.
"What are you all talking about?"
"Why are you so careless?"
Everyone turned, relief washing over their faces.
Lock had appeared.
Whenever he showed up at moments like this, it usually meant he'd found a solution.
Black Widow smiled. "We were talking about your flower shop in the City of the Gods. Quicksilver wanted to send you some rare plants."
She added softly, "Honestly, as your wife, I'm embarrassed—I don't even know what kind you like."
Lock chuckled. The "gardener" she spoke of was his past self, from before time travel—someone who'd tried to live an ordinary life amid ruins. He himself had no special attachment to plants.
"I don't really have a favorite," he said lightly. "I like everything you've given me. But speaking of flowers…"
His eyes narrowed slightly. Something clicked in his mind.
He suddenly remembered the seed—the one left behind by Ego, Star-Lord's celestial father.
That "seed" wasn't a flower, not exactly—it looked harmless, like a small bud.
But once activated, it could expand to engulf entire continents within minutes.
On other worlds, those seeds had consumed whole planets—turning them into extensions of Ego's own body.
Lock's expression turned grave.
The last time he had visited Xandar was during the "Guardians of the Galaxy" events.
Which meant the second incident—the rise of Ego—wasn't far away now.
Once he finished dealing with Zola, he would have to find and destroy Ego's seed immediately.
If left unchecked, and if Star-Lord failed to act in time like before, the consequences would be catastrophic.
In the original timeline, Ego's seed had only managed to grow into a mountain-sized mass before it was destroyed.
But this timeline had already diverged too much because of him.
A small delay now could mean the entire North American continent being swallowed alive.
A disaster beyond imagination.
Everyone noticed Lock suddenly stop speaking, his gaze distant.
They had learned to recognize that look—when his mind was already calculating probabilities far beyond their comprehension.
But Quicksilver couldn't take the suspense. "Idol! What's wrong with the flowers?"
Lock came back to the present and smiled faintly. "I just remembered there's a… unique plant on Earth. One I need to deal with soon."
Black Widow tilted her head. "What kind of plant?"
Everyone leaned in curiously.
What kind of flower could make King Lock—the man who had fought gods—speak with such seriousness?
Lock's tone was calm, but his words made everyone tense.
"There's only one of this species on the entire planet," he said. "Some worlds might not even have it."
A collective gasp followed.
Black Widow's eyes sparkled playfully. "Lock… are you going to give it to me?"
She said it sweetly—partly teasing, partly to provoke Wanda and the others.
She wouldn't have minded a little public affection, especially in front of her rivals.
But Lock simply shook his head. "No. That plant is… dangerous. If it activates, it could threaten the entire Earth. I plan to send it to the moon—or Mars—where it can't harm anyone."
Everyone fell silent.
"…What?"
The romantic moment instantly crumbled.
They'd expected a love story—something beautiful and rare. Instead, they got a cosmic horror.
"What kind of flower can destroy a planet?" Quicksilver muttered.
Fury's patience snapped first. "Then what are we waiting for? Go deal with it first!" he barked.
"Zola's dangerous, but at least she hasn't launched a nuke yet!"
Before anyone could respond—
"BOOM!"
A blinding flash lit up the horizon.
A missile streaked through the air, detonating against the outer energy shield.
Flames roared like a second sun, casting red light over everyone's faces.
If not for the shield Lock had built, that one strike would've flattened the entire headquarters.
Fury's expression hardened. "So much for that," he growled. "Guess Zola didn't appreciate being ignored."
Another explosion followed—then another.
Missiles, one after another, are raining down like fiery meteors.
Each impact shook the earth, the shockwaves rippling through the city.
"She's hacked the launch systems," Hill realized aloud. "Those missiles aren't network-linked, but the terminals still run on computers."
She clenched her fists. "Zola must've infected the operators—through drives, radio frequencies, even mechanical relays."
Once inside, even the best firewalls were useless.
And now, missiles—dozens, then hundreds—were streaking toward them from every direction.
The entire sky became a storm of fire.
"BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!"
Explosions rolled across the city, merging into a single sea of flame.
Even the mob of "jackpot winners" outside wasn't spared.
Those closest to the impacts vanished instantly—burned to ash in a thousand-degree heat.
Farther out, people were blown away like rag dolls by the shockwaves.
Screams filled the air.
"Run! S.H.I.E.L.D. is attacking us!"
"Kill them! Don't let those bastards get away!"
"Help—someone, please—"
The chaos became a nightmare.
Tens of thousands trampled over one another—fighting to escape, to attack, to survive.
Within minutes, the streets became rivers of blood.
Fury's face twisted. "This… this is worse than anything we imagined."
Lock's expression turned cold. His feet lifted off the ground, divine energy shimmering around him as he prepared to fly out.
But Hill shouted, "Lock! It's too late!"
"If Zola's already hacked missile systems, she's probably moving on to the nuclear ones next!"
"If we don't stop her now, it won't be a city that burns—it'll be the entire planet!"
Lock's jaw tightened. She was right.
If Zola gained control of even one nuclear arsenal, humanity would be annihilated before anyone could react.
He turned. "Vision."
Vision stepped forward immediately.
"You've never appeared publicly, have you?" Lock asked. "Good. Take my form. Speak to the people in my name. Tell them to stay calm—promise them anything if you must. Just buy time."
"Intercept any missile or drone you can find."
Vision nodded. The Mind Stone in his forehead pulsed, and his body shimmered—reshaping into a near-perfect copy of Lock's divine form.
"Understood, Mr. Lock."
Then he rose into the air and phased through the barrier.
Several missiles passed straight through his intangible body and exploded harmlessly against the shield behind him.
Lock turned back to the others. His voice dropped, low and steady.
"Everyone, step back. Give me room."
"To destroy Zola… I'll need to use another relic."
They quickly moved aside.
Lock raised his head toward the heavens. His aura flared, shaking the ground beneath him.
And then he called out—
"Heimdall… Heimdall… Heimdall…"
---
A/N: New Fanfic Is Out " Naruto: I'm Boruto Uzumaki"
A/N: Advanced Chapters Have Been Uploaded On My Patreon
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