American Comics: Multiverse of Madness

309. Twilight.

The group, led by Fura, arrived at the inner district of the Blood Nest.

This area used to be full of factories and infrastructure. Previously, Osborn had confined the citizens here, forcing them to labor and produce industrial goods. Their lives were dull and monotonous, with everyone operating like machines.

But now things had changed. Barton had expanded the Blood Nest's eastern district, repairing the residential areas and creating simple urban spaces for the citizens. The industrial work was now mainly done by the vampire thralls, who were strong and resilient. Each one could do the work of five people.

Most of the people who had been trapped before had joined the repair plans. They left the chemical plants and began working on the production of fine parts. Since Barton had taken over the industrial zone, three weapons production lines had already been set up.

When they entered the meeting room, Hawkeye was the first to stand up and greet the group. Behind him were Kate Bishop and the Punisher, and in the corner sat an old man, silent.

"Long time no see, Mr. Barton," Pietro walked up warmly to greet old Barton. However, noticing that Barton seemed to be looking for someone, Pietro quickly added.

"You're probably looking for Ashley, right? Alex said she had other tasks, so it's just us this time."

"I see," old Barton replied, not saying much, though there was a hint of disappointment in his expression.

Sensing this, Pietro quickly changed the topic. "Let me introduce everyone. This is John Constantine, a master of magic from another universe. He's quite powerful—even Alex had high praise for him."

Constantine casually flicked his cigarette butt into the ashtray on the table and nodded silently. "Ahem, nice to meet you all. I'm just a humble occultist, not as extraordinary as you might think. I just know a few tricks."

"These two are from the Bat family. You can call them Barbara and Kate."

"I've heard about you from Black Canary. I'm Kate Bishop, nice to meet you." Bishop walked over and pulled the two young women closer to her side. She held female warriors in high regard, especially young ones like them.

Barbara and Kate didn't reject Bishop's goodwill. It was clear that they had probably talked with Black Canary about their experiences in the wasteland and already knew that this old woman was the mayor of Bishop's Sanctuary, who had taken care of Black Canary for a long time.

"This kid here is Billy. He also goes by the name Shazam," Pietro smiled, introducing Billy.

"I'm seventeen, man," Billy said with a pout, clearly unhappy about being treated like a child.

Everyone had noticed Billy as soon as they entered the room. It was hard not to—his face bore a grim scar, he was blind in one eye, and he had lost a leg. Such terrible injuries on a kid made everyone feel a complex mix of emotions.

"And finally, this not-so-friendly-looking guy is Etrigan. Don't be fooled by his fierce appearance. He's actually someone you can rely on, and he's got serious combat skills."

With the introductions over, Pietro wasted no time and quickly started discussing the challenges the wasteland was facing with Barton.

"Before Alex sent us here, he gave us a rundown of the situation. It seems there's this group called the Universal Church of Truth that's set its sights on Earth, but we don't know much beyond that. Could you fill us in?"

Seeing how straightforward Pietro was, Hawkeye didn't hesitate either. He had some chairs brought over for everyone to sit before he started speaking.

"To be honest, we don't fully understand the situation either. You all know some of the history of our world—about 45 years ago, Earth lost contact with most of the other civilizations in the universe. We have no idea what the rest of the cosmos looks like now."

Old Barton sighed and then turned his head to look at the old man in the corner, who was still muttering to himself.

"This is Star-Lord, the captain of the Guardians of the Galaxy. He was once a hero protecting the galaxy, but Alex told me about what happened to him. The loss of his teammates and family seems to have hit him too hard."

As Barton spoke, the group realized that the old man wasn't just talking to himself; it seemed more like he was communicating with someone else. His behavior resembled that of someone with a split personality.

"Quill, Quill," Barton gently called out as he walked over to Star-Lord. "Can you share some intel about our enemies with our new friends?"

"Huh? What? Oh, sure," Quill snapped back to reality after a moment of confusion, only now realizing that the meeting room had filled up with people, including a very noticeable tall demon.

"Uh, hello," Quill said, awkwardly standing up, his tone a bit dry.

Rocket Raccoon burst out laughing. "Forget the pleasantries, Quill. You should be telling them how serious this is!"

"And you should shut up!" Star-Lord suddenly turned toward Rocket, angrily shouting, "You're not even real! You're just a figment of my imagination, so stop bothering me, please, thank you!"

To everyone else in the room, it looked like Quill was angrily ranting at the empty floor.

The group exchanged glances but didn't say anything to disturb Star-Lord. To them, this old man seemed quite pitiful.

Hawkeye leaned over to Pietro and whispered, "Quill didn't originally know about this. At first, I thought he was crazy too, but it wasn't until Alex told me that I realized he was talking to his dead teammates—though they're just in his mind."

"I'm afraid that's not entirely true," Constantine suddenly chimed in.

His voice immediately drew everyone's attention, including Star-Lord's.

Constantine didn't care about the curious gazes. He simply stepped forward from the crowd, staring at the spiritual energy that was faintly hovering around Quill, and said quietly, "Have you ever heard of spirit possession?"

"Huh?" Everyone looked at one another, not understanding what Constantine was getting at.

Constantine didn't beat around the bush. He grimly locked eyes with Quill and said, "In my world, there are people who, when they die with a strong sense of purpose, a part of their soul can attach itself to objects."

"Attach to objects?" Quill repeated, looking at Constantine, his mind a mess.

"You're not crazy, Star-Prince. At least, not in my opinion."

"It's Star-Lord!" Quill and all the imaginary Guardians behind him spoke out in unison.

"Alright, alright, Star-Lord," Constantine raised his hands in surrender, but then his expression turned serious again. "I don't know what happened to your teammates, but a part of them is still with you—that's their will."

"You mean…" Quill slowly turned, looking at the faint images of Gamora, Mantis, Rocket, and Drax standing beside him, his heartbeat quickening.

In response, his old teammates smiled at him. Their expressions conveyed so many emotions that, for a moment, Quill's heart was overwhelmed.

"I told you, Quill. You're our last hope," Rocket Raccoon said, leaning on a cane and muttering softly.

But those words only made Star-Lord feel an immense pressure. He collapsed to the ground, kneeling before his fallen comrades, sighing in defeat.

"How can you be sure? How can you be sure I'm the hope? I don't deserve to be called the leader of the Guardians of the Galaxy. Because of my mistakes, I lost everyone... including... including you," Quill lamented, clutching his head, haunted by the memories of his children's tragic deaths.

Suddenly, Quill felt a hand gently placed on his head.

"You're worthy."

Like a ray of light in the darkness, Quill slowly looked up.

In front of him, Gamora was smiling, reaching out her hand as if to pull him out of his painful past.

It wasn't just Gamora. Mantis, Rocket Raccoon, and Drax also extended their hands, offering encouraging smiles to Quill.

"You're a warrior, Quill, and the fight isn't over yet," Drax said with a firm nod. Next to him, Mantis added.

"If anyone can save the universe again, it's you, Star-Lord."

"Yeah, Quill," Rocket Raccoon said, walking over and cupping Quill's weathered face with his tiny paws.

"Don't forget, you still owe us revenge. Go take down those sons of b*tches!"

.....

📢30 advanced chapters on p@treaon📢
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310. Danger Approaching!
311. Separating the Liquid Kryptonite.
312. Blackgate Penitentiary!
313. The Prison Arena.
314. The Rise of the New Queen!