Chapter 192

Yelena POV

I twisted, flowing underneath Domina's staff swing while I slashed out. Domina's knee shot up, and my blade bit into her Vibranium armor. She twisted back, separating her staff into a pair of batons that she brought down. My senses alerted me in time, and I activated my Aegis shield. The attacks bounced off them, leaving her open to a massive web attack.

The fluid gushed out of my free hand like a geyser.

There was a flicker of surprise in her eyes before she twisted away with precise footwork, but not quickly enough. Some of the fluid got on her, slowing her down enough for me to go on the offensive.

A leap ate up the distance between us, and I swung downward with all of my might, triggering the strange runes etched onto my blade.

They were sharp enough to sheer through vibranium, much less whatever metal her batons were made of. My blade slipped through her hastily raised guard like it was paper and carved a long line down her torso, cutting through muscles, ribs, and hip bone.

She stumbled back with a sputter, blood fountaining out, and held up both hands in mercy as her batons tumbled free.

"What did he do to you?" she sputtered out in between bloody gasps, and I felt a twinge of something in my chest. She had seconds if she was lucky.

"He set me free," I said. I knew how she worked, but I indulged her anyway.

She let out a laugh. "You traded one master for the other."

I hesitated, and she was instantly in front of me, body covered in a purple glow. Her hand wrapped around mine, holding me in place as a punch dagger went through my throat. Her glow faded as she pulled the dagger free, opening up my throat.

I didn't feel the pain until I hit the ground, gasping. My body spasmed as blood gushed out. I had too much air and not enough, and I clawed at my neck as an icy dread set in.

I saw Dante floating in the air, hundreds of feet away, eyes locked on me. He saw the entire thing happen. Hell, he could've probably saved me if he wanted to, but he let it happen.

Rage poured out of me.

That snake. My instincts had been right about him. Domina had been right about him. He'd been playing us this entire time--me, the Widows, and the children.

Domina roared with laughter that lit a furnace in my heart and sent molten heat pumping through every vein in my body. It was excruciating but familiar.

The Extremis.

Dante had said the formula couldn't save me if I lost my head or heart, but I didn't quite lose my head, now did I?

The blood flowing out of me turned molten red as fire poured out of every orifice. My body stitched itself together, and I swung up just in time to see the dread in her eyes. Domina was at the edge of the array standing inches away from Dante.

His body was bathed in a red and purple aura, and his glare seem to pin her in place. The sight of him sent chills down my spine, and it appeared I was not the only one.

Her eyes darted from him to me, then back to him.

That turned out to be a mistake. I rushed her, aided by my new heat, and stabbed into her back with two stingers that ejected from my forearms.

They pumped poison toxic enough to down an adult elephant into her system. She crumpled immediately, but I didn't stop stabbing. I stabbed until only bone and pulp were left and roared out in anger, my rage turning to Dante.

He didn't so much as flinch.

"Got that out of your system?"

"You could've helped," I snarled at him, molten spittle spraying out of my mouth. It was odd, to say the least.

"I would've stopped her if you were in any real danger," he said.

"So, I nearly died so that you could prove a point!"

"And to unlock that," he pointed at my chest. A molten network spread out from my heart throughout my body, imbuing me with a new strength that I could hardly contain. I could tell you this much, though. It felt like I'd just scratched the surface.

"You would've never tapped into Extremis if you knew you had a safety net. If it makes you feel better, I went through the same thing when I unlocked my powers."

I closed my fist and let out a long breath. That did, in fact, make me feel better.

"So, you're not secretly manipulating all of us for your devices?"

He smirked. "Oh, I obviously am. You just get as much out of it as I do."

"I hate you," I said shaking my head as I stepped over Domina's body.

"Hate you too," he smiled. Neither of us said anything for a time as I got my breathing under control and the heat from my Extremis faded.

"Good to go?" he asked, and I grunted.

"When am I not."

--

Jean

My telekinetic shove slammed into Enrique's surprised face, hurling him hundreds of feet away. He carved a thick line through the vegetation as he crash-landed.

Peering through the smoke, I saw him bent on one knee, body wrapped in a fiery cloak that manifested. Underneath the thick aura of fire laid an intricate armor set covered in runes that drew me in.

What Dante would do to get his hand on those runes?

I hummed. I'll try not to damage his body too badly.

"Not bad," Enrique said with an amused tilt to his voice. "You're a lot more exciting than Ororo and Ilyana said."

My psychic energy crashed into him immediately, pinning him down. The wind whipped, and trees shattered in the background.

He fell to one knee with a surprised grunt but looked excited nonetheless.

That'd change soon enough.

My mind slammed into his like a battering ram, and he put up a brave front, marshaling the dark aura that whipped around him. Several runes on his armor flickered to life and blinked repeatedly.

I was through most of his enchantment when a scream pulled my attention.

Wenwu hung dead from the blade of a tall, lithe demon in silver armor. She had snow-white hair and porcelain skin. I would've sworn she was human if not for her large horn, golden eyes, and tremendous frame. Although it was faint, I could see the resemblance to Lumos.

The ten rings slid off his hands, and she looked at them briefly before she snorted and pointed her blade at me.

A ray of light shot forward, and I created a shield at an angle, sending the beam bouncing off to the side and cutting a line through the jungle. Everything the light touched turned to ash.

While I was occupied, Enrique pounced, sending several blades of aura stabbing out of my shadow. It forced me to reinforce the passive Telekinetic aura around me. The strength of the shadow blades caught me off guard, sending me stumbling, and that small gap was all it took.

Enrique vanished in a puff of flames and shadow, reappearing behind the Light Demon. He grabbed her shoulder, and before I could recover, they were gone.

I chewed my lip in frustration. I can't believe I fell for that.

"He played me. At least he didn't get the ten Rings."

I reached out and floated them over. New toys aside, the fight was not a total loss. I saw flashes of the girls in his mind. Ilyana was fully grown, and Storm was her caretaker now.

A warm feeling tugged at my heart. It wasn't too late. We could still save them.

I closed my eyes and dove into the Astral, searching for Enrique's mental signature. I was in his head long enough to recognize it anywhere, and with my recent enhancements, I could find him anywhere on the planet with enough time. I stood there for close to a minute before my eyes snapped open.

Brazil. He was at the relay station.

Space folded, and Dante appeared some distance with his hand wrapped around Yelena. I hesitated briefly before I waved them over. There was nothing between them—that much was clear from Yelena's thoughts, but I had the sense whatever happened had brought them even closer.

'I found them,' I sent, and he smiled.

'Enrique?'

'He had back up. Some greater demon. She was fast and powerful. I got careless. They escaped to the Brazil Relay station.'

"They're no doubt gathering reinforcement," he said, not that it'll help much." He looked over to the dead body of Wenwu and floated it over, sending it into an aspect of his pocket world where time stood still. I offered him the Rings, but he said no and encouraged me to play with them for a bit.

Most odd, however, was his intentions with Wenwu's body. He had no plans to dissect the thousand-year-old warlord and use the knowledge gained to further empower himself. He thought Wenwu's children deserved a chance to say goodbye. They were innocent in all this.

His phone vibrated in his pocket, and he answered it, putting the call on speaker.

"I'll be headed there shortly, boss. Mordo scoped it out. They're expecting us or something."

"Need help?"

"No. We can handle the Hell Fire Club. Me and the old man are overdue for a meeting anyways," he said. Dante had entrusted the task of eliminating the Hellfire club to Rin specifically.

Considering what they'd been planning, there was no use in keeping them around anymore. They were beyond redemption besides Frost.

She wasn't evil, just opportunistic, and business savvy. Considering the payout that would be coming from this job, Dante wanted the front end of our business in the best hands. And Frost could be bought.

"I'm sending over the picture now," Dante said, forwarding a picture of Domina's dead body. It was ghastly, but an effective tool for demoralization."

He wanted a clean sweep when all of this was said and done. No more looking over our shoulders. No fear from the various factions, which meant putting certain things in place before all of this was over.

"There's also something else," Rin said. "It's already on the news. Dozens of Lizard monsters, stone demons, and shadow monsters are attacking a military base in the middle of the Ocean."

"The Raft?"

"Could be it," Rin muttered, "but something else is going on here at SHIELD HQ in New York. It hit hard, but I gave as good as I got. There are also dozens of other creatures with white skin."

"They must've planned this before Domina died," he muttered, shaking his head. I could feel his emotions rise.

"Of all the places they could've chosen to attack." The Raft was the only superpowered prison in this timeline, according to Dante.

It was where SHIELD sent the worst of the worst, and some of them were actually powerful enough to contend with the strongest members of our pre-enhanced team.

He sighed, massaging his brows. "Either way, we planned for this. The X-Men will take point on the Raft mission. A sorcerer should get them there. Pietro and Wanda should also head over."

It made sense. His speed and her Telepathy. She should be able to shut down all but the strongest members. And the Avengers had no slouches in their roster, not even the new kid, but that was why he was Magneto was staying behind.

"Magneto is in charge of the remaining Avengers and the Brotherhood. And tell the team they need to stop pulling their punches, or they'll die," he said.

"Uh…Boss. I'm not sure that putting him in charge is the best idea."

"I know we can't trust the asshole as far as I can throw him, but I have something he wants. Tell him his cooperation is the price of the conversation, and that he can keep the Adamantium knives."

He shared a look with me, and I nodded in approval. It left the pathway to the Soul deal Magneto was hungry for."

Finally, Dante's voice softened a bit. "And as for the Hell Fire Club thing—whatever you decide, we're with you."

"I'll call you when it's all done," Rin muttered and cut the call, and Dante looked at Yelena, who drew in a deep breath. Something had her rattled, but she was dealing with it well enough.

There was no real mental solution to trauma—trying to fix Colossus taught me that. The best I could do was mood regulation, which she didn't look like she needed.

"So, which relay station are we hitting up first?" she asked.

"Change of plans," he said. "Head over to SHIELD HQ and jump in if you're needed. I have a feeling."

"Shin?" I asked, and he nodded.

"Who's that?" Yelena asked, and Dante smirked.

"Survive this, and maybe I'll tell you."

She huffed.

He snapped his finger, opening two portals. One led to his domain, the other to New York. Yelena leaped through both in a single bound, arriving on a rooftop a few blocks away from SHIELD HQ. The portal snapped shut behind her.

Dante cracked his neck as he walked over to me. "I've never been to Brazil."

"Neither have I. Maybe we should take a trip after this."

"Do you think they'll even let us?"

"If we don't blow up the Amazon too bad."