Mission Success

"Who are you?" a slightly overweight man asked, backing away from me.

"Don't worry. Think of me as the devil. I'm here to make a deal with you. Shake my hand, and in exchange, I'll grant you one of your greatest wishes," I said, stepping closer.

This man was the reason I was here: James Jaspers, known as Marvel's most powerful reality warper—until Matthew Mallory came along.

Jaspers's powers grew stronger the more he used them, but they also eroded his sanity. Right now, he was using his abilities without even realizing it.

I had isolated this house from the rest of the universe and stopped time within it, yet Jaspers was moving on his own.

I had no control over that; he was supposed to be frozen like everyone else. Thankfully, he didn't seem to notice.

"Why would you do that? You could take my soul. Please, don't hurt me."

"I never said I would, nor do I plan to. Now, tell me, what do you truly desire?" I said, channeling my inner Lucifer.

"I want to be the prime minister," Jaspers blurted out, almost unconsciously.

"Good. We can make that happen. Give me your hand," I said, extending mine.

"After this, you'll make me the prime minister?" Jaspers asked hesitantly.

"Of course. I'm the devil. I'm bound to fulfill your request," I replied.

As Jaspers shook my hand, the gauntlet I was wearing extended to cover his arm, transferring his powers—X-Gene and all—into an orb forming in my other hand.

The moment the transfer began, I paralyzed Jaspers to prevent any resistance. The orb grew larger as I absorbed his powers, eventually reaching the size of a beach ball.

The more I took, the more control I gained over him, until I froze him completely, just like everyone else.

"Wow, thank God I came on time," I muttered, horrified.

After waking up today, I was still processing the Living Tribunal's cryptic warning/request for help.

Who wouldn't be? A being of that magnitude singles you out from quadrillions in the multiverse, warns you against overreaching ambitions, and then hints that it might need your assistance.

It was a confusing message—threatening and asking for help at the same time. While I was lost in thought, Paris alerted me to Jaspers's powers awakening, which brought me here.

Thankfully, I arrived before Jaspers could fully grasp the extent of his abilities. He thought I was the one manipulating reality.

As for the orb, it was my way of storing Jaspers's powers before absorbing Matthew's. Like I said earlier, Jaspers's powers were tied to his mind, and I didn't want an ability that risked my sanity.

"Now, on to the next one," I thought, waving my hand to restore everyone—including Jaspers—to their original positions.

I wiped all memories of our encounter. As for my promise to make him prime minister? Yeah, I'm not doing that. I'm not Mephisto or Lucifer, and I'm not obligated to honor the deal.

[I think you should store this one first before moving on to the next,] Paris suggested.

"Makes sense," I thought, creating a utility belt and shrinking the orb to fit into one of its pockets.

Once everything was in place, I teleported away as time resumed. Everyone went about their business as if nothing had happened.

They might feel like they lost track of time, but nothing too suspicious—after all, I only paused time for about a minute.

Even if they noticed, they wouldn't dwell on it. Besides, it's no longer my concern. My goal was achieved, and there's no way they can trace it back to me.

"Paris, where's Matthew now?" I asked, teleporting above Matthew's house, invisible to both the naked eye and any radar.

[He's here, about to enter our house,] Paris answered.

"What? Oh, right. We were planning to test the new game," I remembered, teleporting back to my room and quickly changing clothes.