American Comics: Multiverse of Madness

427. Zombie Quicksilver Strikes!

(T/N): Since it's Christmas there is mass release.

Merry Christmas

................................

In the outskirts of New York City.

As the heroes stepped through the portals one by one, Alex silently nodded.

The zombie strongholds were incredibly dangerous. Even for superheroes, entering them without sufficient understanding or strength would be akin to walking into a death trap.

However, this was a concern mainly for inexperienced heroes. Battle-hardened individuals like Kara, Wonder Woman, and their ilk were not included in this category. With their combat prowess, dealing with the zombies would not pose much of a challenge.

Whether it was Thanos, the Nova Corps, or the genetically modified beings created by the High Evolutionary, defeating them wasn't insurmountable as long as the heroes used appropriate strategies.

After all, the power level of this universe wasn't particularly high, and it couldn't produce beings of overwhelming strength. Otherwise, someone as formidable as Sentry wouldn't have succumbed to a mere zombie virus.

Although the pollution contributed to this situation, the fact that Sentry—an individual capable of chasing dimensional overlords across planes—had his power diminished so drastically after infection showcased how relatively weak the power levels in this universe were compared to what Alex remembered.

The primary concern, however, was the zombie virus itself, which had caused this entire crisis.

Although Alex hadn't yet discovered the origins of the virus or a cure, he had ensured that avoiding infection was within his capabilities.

Before the mission began, Alex cast a protective spell on everyone, designed to guard against physical damage and prevent accidental bites during combat.

This spell, though, was just a basic precaution with limited effect. Alex's true safety measure was subtler: he channeled energy from the temporal regulator into the bodies of everyone through the guise of the protective spell.

By locking each person's individual timeline, Alex essentially gave them a "temporal anchor."

Unlike Loki's collar, which could reset someone to a predetermined point in the timeline, Alex's system made time flow within their bodies. This allowed Alex to restore them to any designated state as needed.

From that moment on, he could rewind any timeline at will. If someone was bitten by a zombie, Alex could revert their body to the unbitten state.

In essence, every agent of the Time Keepers now had a "save point" ability. Even in the event of their death, Alex could expend energy to rewind them to a point when they were alive—with their memories intact.

In a way, this gave them a pseudo-immortality.

Alex hadn't disclosed this to everyone, however. He had briefly mentioned the concept to individuals like Mr. Fantastic, Batman, Superman, and Iron Man but hadn't revealed the existence of Miss Minutes or the full details of the temporal regulator.

This omission stemmed from Alex's personal caution.

Until he fully understood the secrets of the temporal regulator, Miss Minutes, and the unseen forces manipulating events from the shadows, Alex preferred to shield his friends from these potential threats.

Once the portals were closed, Alex deactivated the surrounding concealment spell.

This magic, cast upon his arrival, served to hide their presence and prevent detection.

"What's our next move?" asked Mr. Fantastic, turning to Alex. "If I remember correctly, there are zombie heroes on Earth as well. How do we locate them?"

"No need to find them," Alex replied with a smile. "I've removed the concealment spell. With their abilities, they'll come looking for us on their own."

And just like that, Alex's eyes suddenly narrowed. "Ah, they're already here!"

In the span of two sentences, Alex sensed a speedster rapidly approaching their location.

Everything seemed to fall silent. At full speed, the speedster perceived the world as a motionless, silent tableau.

From Avengers Tower in central New York to the outskirts of the city, Zombie Quicksilver covered the distance in less than ten seconds.

He knew this path well, having traversed it countless times. Every tree and stone along the way was familiar to him.

Ravenous with hunger and so close to his targets, Zombie Quicksilver had no intention of waiting for others like Zombie Sentry. He craved the taste of fresh blood.

As he raced across fields littered with skeletal remains, each step landed lightly on shattered skulls as he sped toward the source of the enticing scent of flesh.

Xavier's telepathic abilities only indicated the presence of "fresh meat" but didn't specify the number of targets.

Initially, Quicksilver thought finding even one survivor would be lucky. But when he saw five silhouettes in the distance, his joy was palpable.

Wind howled beneath his feet as Zombie Quicksilver extended his greedy hands forward. At his speed, the five individuals ahead seemed frozen in time. They wouldn't even know how they died.

In this silent world, where time appeared to stand still, Zombie Quicksilver was the only one in motion.

He got closer and closer to the group. Seeing the exposed necks, he couldn't resist the urge to sink his teeth into them.

Suddenly!

One of the five people moved.

The muscular man with curly bangs slowly turned his head, breaking the stillness. His eyes glowed with a menacing crimson light as he looked directly at Zombie Quicksilver.

The horrifying sight nearly made Zombie Quicksilver's brain shut down. He stared at the man in disbelief, as though seeing an unstoppable force of nature.

And then, to his shock, he noticed among the group a silver-haired youth who looked exactly like him. This doppelgänger also began to move—albeit more slowly—shattering the illusion of frozen time. The threat was clear: these individuals weren't as defenseless as they appeared.

While Zombie Quicksilver's mind raced, the muscular man was already on the attack. Twin beams of scarlet heat vision erupted from his eyes, aimed directly at the approaching speedster.

Faced with imminent danger, Zombie Quicksilver leaned back in desperation. Surviving took precedence over savoring the delicious flesh of his targets.

Boom!

The intense heat vision struck the ground, blowing apart the mound of bones. Fragments scattered into the air, and the surrounding remains trembled from the impact.

Though Zombie Quicksilver narrowly avoided the attack, he wasn't unscathed.

His rapid evasive maneuver left him unbalanced, causing him to tumble uncontrollably. He rolled and crashed along the ground, eventually slamming into a pile of bones with a resounding thud.

Everything happened so quickly that neither Mr. Fantastic nor Ashley had time to react.

All they saw was Clark and Pietro moving suddenly, followed by Clark's heat vision firing and two consecutive explosions.

The first explosion was Clark's direct attack. The second came from Zombie Quicksilver's chaotic crash.

"A speedster, just like Barry Allen," Clark remarked, narrowing his eyes. He then glanced at Pietro. "This guy looks just like you."

"Heh," Pietro chuckled bitterly, though there was no joy in his expression.

"Honestly, I never imagined that my first encounter with an alternate universe version of myself would look like... 'this'."

Despite visiting numerous universes, Pietro had never had the chance to meet another version of himself, let alone interact with one.

And now, after all this time, the first alternate Pietro he met wasn't just alive—it was a ravenous zombie monster that fed on human beings.

The sight killed any enthusiasm Pietro might have had for exchanging heroic wisdom with this doppelgänger.

Zombie Quicksilver moved quickly despite his tumble. Though the fall was severe, his zombified body endured without major injuries. However, his broken legs slightly reduced his speed.

Without hesitation, Zombie Quicksilver scrambled out of the bone pile and fled without looking back.

"Trying to run?" Clark prepared to act but suddenly sensed a powerful, oppressive force descending upon them. It stopped him from intercepting Zombie Quicksilver immediately.

"Leave this to me!"

Pietro was quicker to respond. Donning his goggles, he became a streak of silver light, vanishing from his spot in an instant. A gleaming trail marked his departure.

A crow circled high above, perched atop a skyscraper, observing the unfolding scene below.

In the city streets, two speedsters streaked past in a blur.

Pietro, clad in his Quicksilver suit, raced along the roads, chasing a dark figure ahead.

It was himself—or rather, an alternate version of himself from another universe.

But this Pietro was no hero; he had become a monstrous zombie that preyed on humans.

"This has to be the best birthday ever," Pietro muttered with a wry smile.

"I've somehow ended up in this bizarre, messed-up place...

"...chasing down a zombie version of myself!"

.....

30 advanced chapters on p@treaon
For advance chapters: /Uchiha_Itachi007 (replace @ with a)
428. Zombie Grandfather and Ashley.
429. Hawkeye's Daughter!!
430. Stark, Who Grabs Both Science and Mysticism!
431. Quasar!!
432. The Best Team Building in History!!