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[Frog] Chapter 188: Arch 6
🕑 Added 2024-12-01 19:09:08 +0000 UTCMore and more people began to notice the massive portal in the sky over New York City.
At the Law Firm,
Attorney Matt Murdock, known as Daredevil, was busy working on a case. Ever since the fall of Kingpin, life had become a lot easier for him.
With more time to rest, he no longer had to show up at work with dark circles under his eyes.
But at that moment, an unprecedented sense of danger washed over him.
Then, from the direction of the window, his assistant’s shocked voice rang out:
“Oh, my God!”
“What happened?” Matt asked.
“Over there…”
The assistant described the scene outside. Upon hearing it, Matt knew something serious was unfolding.
“Leave early today,” he instructed.
“Go home, quickly!”
His assistant, having never encountered such a situation, wasted no time in leaving the law firm after hearing Matt’s words.
Matt, on the other hand, entered a small room and changed into his Daredevil suit.
Sensing his surroundings, he locked onto a direction and sprinted out.
---
Meanwhile, at NASA
Reed Richards and his team were conducting experiments.
Since gaining their superpowers, Reed had been researching the mutations in their bodies, trying to determine if they were related to the cosmic radiation storm they had encountered.
As a result, their entire testing area was equipped with devices capable of detecting cosmic rays.
Suddenly, the lab was flooded with chaotic fluctuations in cosmic radiation readings.
“What’s going on?” Reed asked.
“Could a cosmic radiation storm be approaching Earth?”
Using his elastic powers, Reed quickly operated multiple computers, attempting to find the source of the anomaly.
Just then, Ben Grimm, the Thing, burst into the lab and slammed his fist onto a nearby button, causing sparks to fly.
The three others turned to Ben in unison.
“Something’s wrong. Look outside!”
As the lab’s light shield lifted, the scene outside left everyone stunned.
“What… is happening?”
Susan, the Invisible Woman, stared at the enormous portal in the sky, from which something seemed to be pouring out.
Reed quickly accessed nearby surveillance cameras, and a shocking scene unfolded before their eyes.
From the massive portal, countless unidentified creatures were emerging, all riding chariot-like vehicles equipped with laser weapons.
“Tony, what the hell are you up to now?” Reed immediately noticed that the portal was directly above Stark Tower.
And it seemed Tony was the only one on the scene.
It didn’t take a genius to realize—this was an alien invasion.
“What do we do now, Reed?” Johnny Storm, the Human Torch, asked.
In the Fantastic Four, Reed wasn’t just the brains of the team; he was also their de facto leader.
Without hesitation, Reed took off his lab coat, revealing the blue suit underneath, emblazoned with a bold “4” on the chest.
“What do you think? Aliens are invading Earth—we fight back!”
---
At a Small Corner of New York
The X-Mansion stood quietly.
Jean Grey pushed Professor X to the entrance, where they, along with the X-Men, observed the anomaly in the heart of New York.
“Let’s go. We need to see what’s happening,” Wolverine said, his heightened sense of justice driving him to act.
The other X-Men nodded, agreeing with his suggestion.
But to their surprise, Professor X, who usually supported the X-Men’s missions, stopped them.
“There’s no need for any of you to go. Stay at the mansion today.”
Wolverine, puzzled by the sudden change, asked, “Why?”
“There’s no need to ask. Just trust that I have your best interests at heart,” Professor X replied.
“Remember, if anyone leaves today, they won’t be allowed back.”
With that, he gestured for Jean to take him back to his room.
Jean, though curious, didn’t question him and escorted the professor inside.
“Logan, should we still go?” Cyclops asked, watching Professor X retreat.
Wolverine, however, responded with a cryptic question:
“Don’t you think the professor has been… different since the last time he went out alone?”
The others paused, considering his words, and nodded in agreement.
“Let’s stay,” Beast suggested, his rare moment of clarity breaking through.
“I believe the professor has his reasons. Besides, we haven’t exactly been welcomed outside lately.”
---
Inside Professor X’s Room
Standing by the window, Professor X gazed at the portal over New York, his expression complicated. He picked up a satellite phone and created a telepathic barrier around the room to prevent anyone from overhearing.
Dialing a number, he spoke:
“Minister Guo, I’ve done as you instructed. The X-Men won’t interfere.”
On the other end, the minister’s calm voice responded,
“Well done, Charles.
Once Nick Fury is removed from S.H.I.E.L.D., I’ll ensure the X-Men are integrated into the agency.
You’ll finally have a legitimate status.”
“Thank you, sir…” Professor X replied, his voice tinged with emotion.
…
Outside the State University.
In a corner, Gwen quickly pulled out a pair of headphones from her backpack and put them on.
"Red Queen, what's going on?"
"Miss Gwen, Loki has used the Tesseract to open a portal, summoning an alien army with the intent to conquer Earth."
Gwen’s expression darkened. "What about Cousin Anna?"
"Miss Anna seems to have been placed under some kind of mind-control spell by Loki that night. She’s currently inside Stark Tower."
"I knew it..."
That night, Loki's actions had been suspicious, but after Jarvis ran a scan and found nothing wrong, Gwen let it go.
She hadn’t expected to overlook something so critical.
"Red Queen, analyze the best route there."
Gwen reached for her wrist to equip her liquid metal suit—only to realize her wrist was bare.
"Dammit, I forgot to wear my watch this morning!"
Since she started wearing the watch, designed by Alan for maximum comfort, she often forgot it was even there.
As a result, she hadn’t noticed its absence today.
If she had swung to class on her webs, she might have realized it earlier.
But today, she had ridden to campus in George’s car and hadn’t used her Spider-Suit at all.
"No choice. I’ll have to get back home as fast as I can!"
"Miss Gwen, the battlefield is centered at Stark Tower."
"Red Queen, I left Arch 5 at home. I have to retrieve it before heading there."
For the first time, Gwen felt that her carelessness had truly cost her.
"Miss Gwen, proceed to Stark Tower without worry. Arch 6 is already en route."
"What?"
At Alan’s house, the lab door slowly opened. Red Queen’s holographic projection stood outside the lab.
As the doors parted, two small jet-powered drones were pushed to the entrance.
A red laser scanned over the drones, and Red Queen’s voice followed.
"Arch 6, Arch 6-1, systems check complete. Transmission initiating!"
The two drones ignited their blue jet flames and shot out of the lab.
One headed toward Gwen’s location, while the other flew toward her home.
---
On a rooftop.
Without her webs, Gwen had to leap across rooftops, showcasing her incredible physical abilities.
As she glanced toward the city center, her expression changed again.
A massive, whale-like black creature, covered in mech-like armor, was slowly swimming out of the portal.
The entire sky seemed like its ocean.
"What kind of alien creature is that...?"
Just then, Gwen sensed something approaching from behind.
She turned to see a mini drone hovering in mid-air behind her.
"What is this?"
Before she could figure it out, a compartment on the drone’s underside opened, ejecting a white sphere that shot toward her.
The moment it touched Gwen, it melted and quickly spread across her body, covering her entirely.
A new suit, shimmering with a metallic sheen, now adorned her.
Red Queen’s voice echoed once more.
"Miss Gwen, let me introduce some of Arch 6’s new features..."
Gwen shot a webline from her hand and swung toward Stark Tower.
---
Meanwhile, at Gwen’s window, Pikachu curiously inspected his new suit, clearly satisfied.
"Pikachu, Master has assign you a mission, to fully support Miss Gwen."
"Pika... Chu..."
With a leap from the windowsill, Pikachu landed on the drone’s body and sped off in Gwen’s direction...
(To be continued)...
Comments
yesnomaybeso
Thanks for the chapters! Really enjoying the story.
