Quicksilver and XLR8!
20: Chapter 20: Ultron and Upgrade!
Quicksilver and XLR8!
Gwen successfully hauled the family out of the crater.
Resting a hand on the mother’s shoulder, she comforted her softly, “The police will be here soon.
It’s safe now.” The woman nodded through her sobs, unable to comprehend why her husband had turned into such a monster.
The little boy in her arms wiped away his mother’s tears with his tiny hands, sniffling as he said, “Don’t cry, Mommy.
Daddy will be here soon too.” Hearing her child’s words, the woman looked over at the cocooned Lizard hanging high from a nearby tree, and she burst into an even harder fit of crying.
*Oh, my poor child…
it’s better if your father never comes back…
sob…* Gwen also hauled out the Lizard’s experimental equipment to serve as evidence.
“Regardless, Martha, life goes on.
Your child still needs you.” Hearing Gwen’s comfort, the woman nodded tearfully.
In truth, aside from pulling herself together, there was nothing else she could do.
*Wait…
how does Spider-Woman know my real name?* Just as Martha opened her mouth to ask in confusion, she noticed a bewildered look from Owen.
“Your real name is Martha too?” Instantly terrified by Ripjaws’ monstrous appearance, Martha choked back her tears and nodded blankly.
The little boy in her arms suddenly felt a surge of protective instinct.
Puffing out his chest with a brave, chubby posture, he chirped, “Yeah!
What about it!” Owen swapped his transformation back to Heatblast.
*I guess I need to join the Martha Cinematic Universe too!* By the time the police arrived, Owen and Gwen had already departed.
Later, at The Daily Bugle building.
J.
Jonah Jameson flipped through the photos brought back from the front lines, utterly overjoyed.
Finally, The Daily Bugle had a fresh angle to smear Spider-Woman!
Such massive, widespread destruction—setting the villain aside, didn’t Spider-Woman bear even a single fraction of the responsibility?!
Flipping to a photo of a police officer draping a jacket over the little boy, Jameson’s heart melted instantly.
“Oh, poor little guy.” When he flipped to the next photo, Jameson fell into deep thought.
“Wait, isn’t something off here?” On the photo was a flaming Bat-Signal left in the sky by Heatblast.
…
Having changed into civilian clothes, the two walked down the street.
Gwen acted as if nothing had happened, though her eyes kept darting toward Owen.
Noticing that Owen seemed to be scanning his surroundings as if searching for something, Gwen grew even more curious.
Unable to contain herself any longer, Gwen bumped her shoulder against Owen’s and tried to pry, “Hey…
why did his threat to hunt you down make you so mad?” Focused entirely on scanning for traces of the Hulk and Stark, Owen answered casually, “Because being hunted damages my manhood.
Real men settle things in 1v1 duels.” Gwen scrunched up her nose, her expression clearly saying *only a fool would believe that*.
Narrowing her eyes, she smiled slyly.
“Is someone else hunting you down?” Owen glanced at her without saying a word, continuing his search for the Hulk and Stark.
The surrounding streets were crowded and bustling, surrounded by greenery and flowers without a single trace of battle.
This made Owen even more confused.
According to the original storyline, shouldn’t the two of them be beating the daylight out of each other right around here?
Had the plot diverged?
Taking Owen’s silence as tacit confirmation, Gwen’s expression turned serious.
“It’s okay, Owen Vance.
Just tell me who it is, and I’ll make sure the police prepare a cozy cell for him!” She even patted her chest heroically as she spoke.
Owen turned his head, scanning Gwen from top to bottom with an unhidden look of disdain.
He opened his mouth, about to tease her, but after thinking it over, he turned his head back to keep looking for the Hulk and Stark, whispering softly, “Forget it.
Unlike me, if you met him, you wouldn’t even get the chance to run.” With Owen indirectly admitting it, the smile on Gwen’s face froze instantly.
A wave of dread crept up from the bottom of her heart alongside a sudden chill.
Owen Vance was undeniably the strongest mutant she had ever met.
Yet…
what kind of creature could hunt someone as powerful as Owen?
A cold shiver ran down Gwen’s spine, making her shudder involuntarily.
After searching one more loop and finding nothing, Owen gave up.
Finding the Hulk and Stark wouldn’t unlock any new alien heroes anyway; he had only looked out of pure curiosity.
Owen stopped in his tracks.
“I’m not heading back.
I’m taking a trip out.” A wave of unease swept over Gwen, making her strangely worried.
“Where are you going?” Hands in his pockets, Owen turned and walked in the opposite direction, waving a hand before blending into the crowd.
“I’ll be back in a few days.” Gwen narrowed her eyes, looking up at the high-rises beside them.
…
Owen walked down the street in frustration, a single question lingering in his mind.
How on earth was he supposed to get to Sokovia?
Through his hard work over the past day, he had earned some money—enough to buy a plane ticket.
The problem was, he didn’t have a legal identity!
With a twitch of his eye, Owen thought of Heatblast and Ripjaws.
“Sokovia is in Europe, separated by the Atlantic Ocean…
don’t tell me I actually have to fly or swim all the way there?” Just then, screams erupted from the crowd ahead like a crashing wave.
Looking toward the commotion, he saw Stark locked in a fierce brawl with the Hulk in the distance.
Or more accurately, the Hulk was single-handedly thrashing Stark.
*Well then.* It turned out the plot hadn’t diverged after all; he had just been walking in the wrong direction.
Owen located the unfinished high-rise building that was doomed to be destroyed, sighing in pity.
*You’re about to be gone, buddy.* *Let me sing you a song to comfort your soul.* *”My newly bought building~ my newly bought building’s getting smashed~”* …
Without the Hulkbuster armor deployed, Stark had zero capability to fight back.
The only saving grace was that most of the civilians in the area had already fled.
*BANG!* Stark slammed heavily into the pavement.
As he struggled to push himself up, he spotted Owen standing on the sidewalk nearby, looking completely unbothered.
Just as Stark opened his mouth to yell at him to run, he saw Owen kick his legs into high gear, pumping his arms as he sprinted down an alleyway in a flash.
“Nigerundayo!” Standing up, Stark let out a bitter laugh.
“What a humorous guy.” With that, facing the Hulk who was leaping down from midair with a giant fist raised, Stark blasted straight up into the sky to dodge.
The Hulk’s fist smashed a massive crater into the pavement, kicking up a blinding cloud of dust.
Seizing the moment, the airborne Stark quickly called down the Hulkbuster armor segments.
Noticing the movement, the Hulk prepared to jump up and intercept, but he suddenly sensed something and turned his head toward the alley.
As the smoke gradually dispersed, a tall silhouette emerged—and two massive red fists slammed straight into the Hulk’s face!
The sheer physical force sent the Hulk flying, crashing through two whole buildings before coming to a stop.
Stark didn’t even have time to be astonished.
Donning the Hulkbuster armor, he charged in to follow up the blow.
“Great punch!
Of course, I’ve got an even better one!” “Go to sleep, go to sleep, go to sleep!” A few minutes later, the Hulkbuster armor was torn to absolute shreds, and Stark was forced to flee in disgrace.
“Is that boxing guy still around?!
Baby Hulk still needs his lullaby service!” Owen, however, had long since vanished without a trace.
Having followed them, Spider-Woman squatted on the roof of a high-rise, watching Heatblast fly into the clouds and disappear toward the horizon.
Deep concern shone in her eyes.
Knowing that someone as powerful as Owen was fleeing from a pursuer, she couldn’t help but overthink his sudden departure.
*Where is he going?
Will he be in danger?* After standing motionless for a long time, Gwen suddenly slapped her own forehead.
“Wait…
why am I worrying about him so much?” On the other side of the world, arriving even before the Avengers, Owen successfully set foot in Sokovia.
The moment he arrived in Sokovia, Ultron awakened the silhouette of Upgrade in his mind!
And Quicksilver awakened the silhouette of XLR8!