Ohio - Near the Shield base.
In the car, Jhon had to make sure his Dhampir scent didn't leak unnecessarily. He had been lucky that Blade hadn't noticed he was one, so he wanted to keep that anonymity. Right now, he wasn't in the mood to give explanations.
Afterward, after resting a few hours and eating to regain energy, the group and the hunter headed straight to the base, finally arriving at night.
The van drove through the silent darkness of the arid fields. Beside it, keeping pace, was the Harley of Khonshu's avatar.
"Blade! Can you hear me?" Jhon shouted, calling to the hunter midway to the base. At that moment he was leaning out the window, with one arm halfway out.
Hearing his name, Blade turned toward him without stopping the bike. "What is it?" he said stoically, his face showing no visible emotion, but his completely white and glowing eyes would scare anyone.
Only the one talking to him isn't just anyone.
Unfazed, Jhon asks a simple question, pointing ahead with his hand, his hair waving from the speed they were going. "Is that supposed to be... normal?"
What he pointed at was the huge number of Zombies gathered in front of the Shield base. Mentally he cursed himself for not watching that damn series.
"Yes." Blade replied bluntly, understanding his doubt but offering no more explanations. All the ones needed would be given once they reached the base.
After saying that, he accelerated his Harley to get there faster; the less time they needed, the better. He didn't want to alert the queen too soon.
Though with the new variable, he didn't see the fight as lost.
Inside the car.
Hearing Blade's response, Jhon's lips tightened. The hunter could sometimes go from being sociable to being a stoic man of few words. He admired his dedication to the job a little.
Meh, who was he kidding? One of the things he hated most was having a power and someone else being able to take it away from you as if you were worth absolutely nothing. That's why he defended tooth and nail that personal power is the best.
He moved away from the window. Riri raised it immediately. Then he lowered his head and began removing a few lint balls from his half-worn suit.
While doing so, he commented: "He said to keep going."
Riri heard him and hesitantly asked: "Are you sure? Because there look like 500 Zombies..." She swallowed a bit of saliva at the huge crowd of aberrations.
A mischievous smile grew on Jhon's face as he lifted his head after finishing removing the dust. "Relax, little Riri, I'll protect you."
"Idiot! Stop calling me that." Riri exclaimed with anger and embarrassment on her face. She regretted telling Jhon that her grandfather called her that.
Though annoyed, she decided to speed up the car, doing what that jerk Jhon said.
Kate and Kamala chuckled under their breath at her reaction.
The first one gave him a light slap on the arm, making him pretend it hurt again. Only the one who actually hurt was Kate. Did this guy have steel skin or what?
The second one in the front seat frowned, narrowing her eyes seriously, trying to look closely.
"They seem... still."
"Wow, really!?" Jhon replied with obvious sarcasm. What he got was a glare from Kamala.
They were about to keep talking, but a voice interrupted them.
"Guys... we're here." The voice was Riri's, who was a little nervous. She stopped the van in front of the Zombies. Beside her was Blade, who also stopped his bike.
"Shall we get out?" Jhon asked, excited to meet more characters he had once seen.
"No, wait and see what Blade says. He seems to know more about this than we do." The one who answered him was Kate, serious. She wanted everything to go well and to be able to save the world. They would still follow the plan of mentioning Jhon's power to generate various emotions, but the transmitter was a very viable second option.
Jhon stared at her serious expression, a little fascinated. Her furrowed brow was frankly... adorable. So much so that he couldn't help but comment.
"You look... cute when you're serious, did you know?" he said, looking closely at her eyes, which were also beautiful. Honestly, it still surprised him the difference between his previous world and the worlds of "fiction"; there was a complete disparity in appearances.
Besides, while he respected her seriousness, he was clearly very relaxed about everything. Though he knew he wasn't a planet-destroying monster, he was quite strong now, which made him calm down a bit.
Kate was caught off guard and blushed at Jhon's comment. "I-Idiot, don't say that. This is serious." She said, stammering a little, turning her face away.
Jhon was amused by her reaction, but knowing they had to get out of this quickly, he signaled Riri to lower the window. Which she did without much fuss. If you asked her what she'd prefer, she'd say staying home eating those tomatoes she'd never tried, but she had no choice.
Jhon whistled at Blade, drawing his attention. "Blade, what do we do now?" he asked, looking for a reason why they were in front of the Zombie horde.
"Wait." That was the only answer he got.
Jhon frowned. "What are we going to wai-"
[Say what you want]
He couldn't finish, because a woman's voice was heard throughout the field, amplified by megaphones. Even so, the Zombies didn't flinch at all.
Kamala inside the car got scared and started looking around. "W-Who said that?"
"Up there," Riri pointed to an amplification team on the building to calm her silly friend. She succeeded, because Kamala visibly calmed down.
As for the voice, since there was no response, the person inside the building repeated.
[SAY WHAT YOU WANT!]
Kamala was about to lean out the window and talk to the stranger, but suddenly there was a click inside the car.
The three turned alarmed. They had forgotten about Jhon!
As for him, taking advantage of their distraction, he quickly got out of the car. He was already bored; couldn't they speed up the plot? He wanted to fight some of them to test his body's strength.
If this crap were on a TV, Jhon would probably skip the filler, but since it was real flesh and blood, he had to endure it.
He yawned while stretching. With his jacket unbuttoned, his perfectly sculpted musculature could be seen.
'All right, here we go'
Stopping the yawn, he looked at the camera that was capturing them live with a smile. "Is this the Shield base?" he asked out loud.
The voice didn't disappoint, as it answered right away.
[Who is asking?]
"Someone who has what it takes to end the plague," Jhon replied calmly.
[Oh... okay, go ahead then] the voice accepted without issue and allowed them to pass.
Then a mechanism seemed to activate, making the Zombies open a path to the base entrance.
"..."
Jhon stood there, frozen like a statue as the wind passed over his face. 'Damn it, I wanted to look cool. Aren't they letting strangers in this easily?' He was discouraged, so to avoid more embarrassment, he signaled Riri to drive.
She opened the window for the umpteenth time and Kamala stuck her head out. "Is it safe to go in? I don't want to end up green!" she asked Jhon.
[Relax, they don't bite.] The one who answered was the voice, though her tone betrayed her amusement.
"You heard her," he replied, walking ahead. Blade started the bike and followed him; the car came last.
During the short journey, Jhon carefully observed each Zombie, studying their behavior: no change in expression and no sign of hunger. It didn't take a genius to realize they were being controlled, but the question was, what was controlling them?
After 5 seconds, they managed to pass the line, ending up in front of some beautiful women, heavily armed and visibly ready to take countermeasures. Beside them was a bearded man in a generic Captain America suit, though it would be better not to tell him that.
The woman in the middle had a firm and well-maintained bearing. Her hair was black and straight, gathered in a high, precise bun that left her face completely clear. She had marked features: defined cheekbones, thin lips, and dark eyes that observed calmly. She wore a white tactical suit similar to the women beside her, but adapted to her figure and status: the material was equally resistant and fitted, with reinforcements on the shoulders and forearms, plus gray panels running down the sides for greater mobility. Yes, Melinda, the mother of the Black Widows.
Kamala, Kate, and Riri quickly got out of the car. The first was a little tense at being in front of women with killer faces; the second was more trained, so her face didn't change much, only the hand holding her bow was quite firm. The last one was frankly... nervous, but she didn't want to show hostility, so she didn't ready her cannons.
From the trunk came Friday, walking behind them.
Seeing that everyone had passed the path, Melinda pressed a button on the tablet she held in her hands, making the Zombies return to their positions.
"Wow! How did you do that?" Kamala asked with a sparkle in her eyes.
Melinda didn't answer right away. First she scanned the group, though she paused a little on Jhon, looking him up and down. Then she turned to her as if nothing, slightly unsettling her. Stoically and without beating around the bush, she said: "With a neurological agent developed to control humans."
Then a smile appeared on her face. "Though it works better on Zombies, providing camouflage for our home."
"Hehe, yeah..." Kamala scratched her head nervously, wondering if they were going to put one on her beautiful brain.
Jhon just raised an eyebrow, looking at Alexei who was staring at him with dead eyes and making finger gestures: I'm watching you, watch out for my little sugar cube. That amused him.
Alexei suddenly clenched his fists and said randomly with helplessness: "I had pigs and I raised them..." His face showed melancholy. "The Zombies ate them."
"So be careful." He said it into the air, but specifically looking at Jhon. Melinda turned to look at him with narrowed eyes. He just shrugged and turned his head. What did he do? He just gave the newcomers advice; he didn't say anything bad!
"So, what do you have?" Leaving off looking at Alexei, Melinda addressed them, getting to the point. Although she had let them in because they were survivors, the main reason was that thing that could save the world.
It was then that Riri took the lead, stepping forward and pulling the transmitter from her pocket.
"We found this." She showed the transmitter, holding it with two fingers.
"It was in a crashed Quinjet in New York. We know it's part of some Shield plan to stop the plague, but... we can't know what it does without a Shield mother card."
"Well... here's a mother card." The one who answered was the woman on the side who had stayed out of it.
The woman had an athletic build, medium height. Her face had notably defined features, like a model: high cheekbones, soft jaw, light and straight eyebrows framing intense green eyes. Her blonde hair, slightly wavy, was gathered in a short, practical braid that kept it out of the way. She wore a tight white tactical suit that highlighted her curves and perfect proportions, refined to seduce any man alive. She was Yelena, a Black Widow.
Hearing her response, the three surviving friends were happy, because if the first plan didn't work, they knew the second one would.
"Only... first we have to introduce ourselves." Yelena said, killing their excitement with a smile. "Are you the stripper of the group?" she asked, looking at Jhon.
"Pff" Kate laughed, receiving a glare from Jhon.
The man in question just looked at Yelena and said: "Yes." Then he put a mocking smile on his face. "Why? Feeling lonely and need a service?"
Kamala looked at Jhon with her cheeks puffed out. Damn bastard, he almost kissed her a few hours ago and now he was flirting with another. She should have listened to the angel on her shoulder.
Alexei almost lunged at Jhon, but Melinda stopped him by grabbing his ears.
Yelena's lips just curved. "Maybe." She didn't say anything more.
Then she turned toward Blade with a raised eyebrow. "Why the cape and the... glowing eyes?"
Blade kept his stoic face, his completely white eyes giving him a mysterious air. "I am the Avatar of Khonshu, god of the Moon."
"Ohh... sorry for asking, I guess." She shrugged with a bit of pity. After that, she looked at her mother. "Let's let them in, let's test what they have."
She kept walking inside, moving her hips with a seductive air. Jhon swallowed a bit of saliva watching her. Don't judge him; this Eliatrope man could get nervous sometimes too.
Melinda watched them. A curve grew again on her lips. "Let's go inside." The Black Widows and their whole group moved inside the base, leaving space for the new guests to enter.
"Hey... I wanted to introduce myself too," Kamala whispered, dejected because they didn't let her say her name.
Jhon approached her and ruffled her hair. "We'll introduce ourselves properly later, let's go inside."
"Hmph, let go of me, bastard." Kamala huffed, removed his hand from her head, and ran inside.
The others followed her, leaving Jhon stunned by what Kamala had said. Him? A bastard? He was just a man with a big heart!
Only suddenly he frowned and looked up, feeling a piercing gaze on him. 'Uatu or Kamar-Taj?' he thought, trying to guess who could be the one watching him.
Without knowing the answer, he entered the base.
...
One minute later, in the operations room.
"Let's see... what do we have here," Melinda murmured, placing the transmitter on the mother card. Alexei, Kamala, Riri, Kate, and Yelena were staring intently beside her.
After it activated, she carefully analyzed the data displayed on the command room board. "The device emits an encrypted subspace frequency, specifically designed to contact an intergalactic authority called... the Nova Corps."
"So..." she continued explaining to those present with her.
Only not everyone was paying attention.
Unaware of the explanation being presented, behind them.
Jhon stood beside Blade, then murmured a little low, but loud enough for someone to hear if they paid attention. "Hey, what has Khonshu told you about the bitch who controls the Zombies?"
"How do you know?" Blade countered, without answering his question.
"Back to the same thing..." Jhon sighed. "Is being the Avatar of a god lowering your intelligence?" Blade's eyebrow twitched, but he didn't let him reply. "When I fought Captain Marvel, she had her eyes completely red, with no sign of sanity at all. So unless Captain Marvel got high before turning into a Zombie, someone was manipulating her."
Jhon knew who he was talking about, but he wanted to seem like a simple observer.
"Wanda Maximoff," Blade said, looking him in the eyes. "She's the one controlling them, the queen of the Zombies."
"Wanda Maximoff?" A voice interrupted, drawing their attention. Apparently someone had heard them.
Yelena, who had turned because her senses caught someone whispering, stood straight and looked at the two. "The Avenger?"
"Yes," Blade replied. The others began to listen to what they were talking about.
"I knew it!" Alexei shouted. "The Avengers can't be trusted!" He pointed at the hunter. "I'm sure it was Captain America who caused this, right?"
"Hey! Not all Avengers are bad," Kate retorted. However, remembering that her master was hunting them to eat their brains, she whispered in shame: "Well... not that much."
Alexei was about to reply, but the mother of the Widows didn't let him.
"Now is not the time for your duality, Alex," she said, pulling him out of his delusions.
Then she fixed her gaze on the Avatar and Jhon. "If what you say is true, then we must get this transmitter into space quickly."
"Can't we do it here?" Kamala asked, confused.
"No, the aftermath of what happened in Wakanda scatters our atmosphere's signals," she replied. She stood up and showed them on the holographic screen of the room. The screen had a projection of the planet, while the words: [No signal] were scattered across it.
"Then we need a ship to get us out of the atmosphere," Riri affirmed; everything they were saying was complicating things on a larger scale.
Kamala's eyes lit up. "Exactly! Do you have a ship here?" she exclaimed excitedly.
"Uh... no." Alexei replied, then let out a laugh. "But we have my limousine! It has to be good for something." His jokes gave everyone a headache.
At that moment.
Turning his gaze outside, Jhon frowned as he felt something touching his perception. Earlier, when they hadn't entered yet, he had let his wakfu leak, filling the entire field with his energy to have better teleportation capability.
"We've been invaded," Jhon said suddenly out loud. Drawing attention.
"HAHAHAHA, he's gone crazy from selling his body!" Alexei pointed at him laughing, looking at everyone to see who laughed at his joke. It seemed he had taken seriously that Jhon was a gigolo.
"He's not wrong," Blade confirmed. "They found us."
That's when Alexei stopped laughing and everyone got serious. Once might be a mistake, twice not.
"Who found us?" Alexei asked, serious for the first time.
It was Jhon who answered this time. "The Zombie horde, there are thousands."
At that instant.
[WARNING] [WARNING]
The alarms began to sound throughout the base, echoing in everyone's ears and creating tension in the room. The red lights began to fill every corner of the room.
"MY DAUGHTERS," Alexei shouted, knowing it was time for war. "TO POSITIONS, NOW!"
The Black Widows began to run, taking every sentinel post in the base. Armed and ready for any intruder.
"ARE WE GOING TO LET THEM TAKE OUR HOME?" he shouted again.
"NO!" shouted the Black Widows and Kamala.
"ARE WE GOING TO LET THEM INVADE US?!"
"NOOO!" shouted the Widows again, already in position. Ah... and Kamala.
"Good. Take care of yourselves, daughters." He whispered with pride, then went to look at the screen in front of him that showed the Zombie army attacking them.
....
Outside the base - 5 Minutes later.
Okoye, with her spear and red eyes, was on top of a hill. Her grotesque and imposing figure stared fixedly at the base she had been sent to get the key for her queen.
"What we seek is here," she whispered with a sinister voice, talking to herself in the silence of the night.
Only she wasn't even a little alone right now.
When she said that, behind her began to emerge an countless number of Zombies, filling most of the arid field. There were so many that they dwarfed those at the base.
A Zombified Abomination stood beside her. Its roar echoed everywhere. The roar of a being that, before being turned, never held back, and now even less.
Beside Abomination appeared a figure that had long been translucent, phasing between material and immaterial, as if its frequency was completely incoherent with the normal world. Half of its face was completely detached, while it still wore the tactical uniform it used when it was a mercenary.
Then appeared one that had been overlooked until now. The once Avenger and Kate's master, Hawkeye. His eyes were completely red like the others. His bow drawn and aimed.
"RAAHHHHGG"
A Captain America with half his body detached appeared, rolling with the shield that had once represented peace.
Okoye was about to order them to kill everyone and bring the one the queen needed, but that's when she noticed someone flying above them.
She narrowed her eyes and raised her hand, stopping the Zombies. They obeyed.
She waited 10 seconds to see what they would do, but since the person above did nothing, she didn't want to waste more time. With a grunt she moved her hand forward, signaling the Zombies to advance.
GRRRRRAAAAH
They all ran like a herd of uncontrolled antelopes. Abomination took a leap that carried it far ahead of the others by many meters. Its robust body turned any normal Zombie beside it into pulp.
"Wait a bit, Jhon." Melinda indicated to Jhon, who was flying above the Zombies, looking at them with contemplation and a bit of pity on his face, his jacket moving with the wind. His face showed no trace of the usual playful Jhon. No, he knew he had to be as serious as possible to end this quickly. Though he treated this as training and to grow in power, he wouldn't let any of his acquaintances die in vain just because he didn't want someone to wish it would all end.
"All right, activate them." He replied softly.
When he said that, the Zombies at the base aimed their spears and weapons at the Zombies of the horde.
The Zombies of the horde were getting closer.
And closer.
And closer.
Until...
BOOOOOMM
Overlapping explosions began to fill everything around. Okoye's Zombies began turning to ash and meat paste scattered everywhere as a result.
However, it wasn't enough.
Abomination was about to grab Captain America and throw him toward the base conduit.
BOOMM
But a cyan blue energy beam hit it, sending its imposing figure 50 meters back, pulverizing Captain America in the process. When that happened, Jhon heard a hysterical scream from Alexei in his ear: "NOOO!" His voice carried the pain of his 20 years of obsession.
"The song that will be sung for generations won't be heard anymore, the Captain was mine!" In the end he started crying and Jhon had to turn off his communicator so his ear wouldn't fall off.
Staring fixedly at the army and the falling vibranium shield, Jhon created a wakfu portal beneath him and another nearby. The shield fell into his hand.
'Heh, new addition to the collection' He laughed in his mind and stored it in the dimension. Then he looked toward Okoye and shouted: "WAKANDIAN!"
His voice echoed throughout the field and the base, rumbling in the skies.
"WHY DON'T YOU TELL YOUR QUEEN THAT HER FATHER IS HERE?!" A manic smile formed on his face. He opened his arms to the sides and behind him hundreds of portals began to appear, illuminating the dark night.
"HAHAHAHA" His laughter echoed like his voice, sending chills to those inside. Even his friends were seriously wondering if Jhon had gone crazy and they hadn't noticed.
"Die." He whispered as if decreeing their end, filling the portals with a huge amount of wakfu.
--------
Hello, this is your author. It's time to speed things up, so goodbye to half of Wanda's army. Poor thing, the beautiful redhead is surely going to be sad.
I hope you enjoyed it.
Please leave comments so I know the fic is getting support.
[JhonDaoist]