Chapter 128: The Vanished Wormhole

"What's that?" Bobby pointed to the holographic display on the warship. "Something flew in from the other side of the wormhole."

Kallruth replied, "That's a missile. I think I saw Iron Man bringing it in."

"A missile?" Garus didn't react immediately, then his eyes widened. "Damn, that's a nuke!"

At that moment, he recalled S.H.I.E.L.D.'s helicarrier launching a nuclear missile in a desperate bid. The Security Council... those bastards. When he got back, they'd have a lot to answer for.

"Sindragosa! Activate the protective barrier!"

An icy blue shield enveloped the Legion warship and the frost dragon.

The nuke collided with one of the Leviathan warships of the Chitauri fleet. A blinding light erupted from the center of the explosion, illuminating the dark void of space. The shockwave swept through the entire fleet.

The nuclear explosion was far more powerful than Garus had anticipated. The Chitauri warship at the center of the blast was torn apart and vaporized. Further out, the protective shields on some ships held up, but the shockwave sent them spinning uncontrollably.

The frost barrier absorbed the intense heat and radiation from the nuclear blast, though the sheer force still made the warship tremble. Fortunately, the barrier held firm.

When the chaos subsided, the once densely packed Chitauri fleet had been drastically thinned.

"Mr. Garus," Kallruth's voice carried a hint of dread. "The wormhole has disappeared."

The fear was palpable. Without the wormhole, they were stranded in an unfamiliar universe. Worse still, the remaining Chitauri forces surrounded them, cutting off any hope of retreat.

The holographic projection on the Legion warship displayed the scene behind them: a broken ring floating where the wormhole had been.

"That's a stargate belonging to the Shi'ar Empire," Kallruth explained. "It's been destroyed. We have no way back now."

Garus tried contacting Kingpin, who was still on Earth, but the distance was too great. He couldn't establish a connection, nor could he open a Death Gate to Earth.

His ability to traverse universes through Death Gates now seemed useless. Perhaps the wormhole had temporarily compressed the two worlds, but with it gone, the distance between them had grown insurmountable.

In the original timeline, the Mind Stone was supposed to be the key to closing the wormhole. Never in his wildest dreams did Garus think that a nuke would destroy the stargate on the other side, severing the connection.

Looks like finding a way home was going to be a long journey. Still, he wasn't too worried. Asgard's name resonated across the galaxy—once he reached Asgard, he could use its connection to reopen the Death Gate to Earth. And Sakaar had a direct path to Asgard.

"Don't worry," Garus said, looking at the enemy forces closing in. "I'll find a way back. But first, we need to eliminate their leader."

Back on Earth, the Tesseract in Stark Tower stopped emitting its towering blue energy beam as the wormhole's other coordinate vanished.

"Failed again!" Loki, battered and bruised, slumped to the ground as Thor bound him. "What will you do with me, brother? Hand me over to these humans?"

Thor hauled him up. "You will face justice in Asgard for your crimes."

As the wormhole disappeared, the Chitauri forces that had been swarming the skies over New York suddenly lost power and plummeted to the ground.

Sarina, reporting live, couldn't contain her excitement. "We've won! Thanks to the Avengers and the mutants, our world has been saved from the invaders! Honestly, I have no idea what the military was doing!"

Watching the broadcast, the President and Secretary of Defense were seething but dared not act against the outspoken reporter.

"Look, it's Tony!" Steve Rogers' keen eyes spotted Iron Man, falling powerless from the sky. "He must've been the one who closed the wormhole. But how?"

The Hulk leapt from building to building, intercepting Tony mid-fall. Grabbing hold of him, he ripped open the damaged helmet, revealing Tony's pale but conscious face.

"Tony, are you okay?" Steve asked, relieved to see him moving.

"Closed the wormhole... politicians..." Tony muttered, rubbing his face. "Damn, my handsome face better not be scarred. The ladies would be devastated."

His flippant tone left the others exasperated.

"Alright, alright," Tony continued. "Here's the story. Those idiots fired a nuke at New York. I tossed it into the wormhole, and Garus' warship cleared the enemies near the portal. By the way..." Tony's face grew serious as he remembered. "When the wormhole closed, did anyone see Garus' other warship come through?"

The team exchanged uncertain glances and shook their heads.

"Great. Let's deal with that later. Right now, I'm starving. Anyone up for tacos?"

Pietro Maximoff, who had returned to Earth through the wormhole, gazed at the now-closed portal and connected with Naxxramas via comms.

"Wanda, Garus is still on the other side. He didn't make it back."

Wanda's heart sank. "Come back for now. We'll deal with this later. And bring Dr. Selvig and the Tesseract with you."

The Legion warship docked near the floating fortress. Mutant students and Skrull allies disembarked.

On Stark Tower's rooftop, Dr. Erik Selvig found himself abruptly teleported to a strange new place.

"Who are you?" Selvig asked, bewildered by his unfamiliar surroundings.

"This is the Mutant Academy," Wanda explained. "We need you to reopen the wormhole."

"Why?" Selvig replied warily. "Do you want those invaders to return?"

"Garus is trapped on the other side," Wanda said. "The wormhole is his only way back."

"I can't reopen it," Selvig admitted. "It's not that I don't want to—it's physically impossible. Opening a wormhole requires two coordinates, and the one on the other side was destroyed. I'm sorry, but it can't be done."

Wanda's face darkened, but she sensed he was telling the truth.

Kingpin interjected, "Even though I can't contact Garus, if something had happened to him, I'd feel it. I'm confident he'll find his way back."

Despite the severed communication, the contract linking Kingpin and Garus remained intact, preventing Kingpin from losing control.

"That's not all," said Xerion, a mutant. "I have a prophecy about Garus. One day, a massive fleet will return to Earth, and Bobby and Blonsky will be aboard."

"Are you sure?" Pietro grabbed his shoulders.

Xerion nodded firmly. "Absolutely. My prophecies never miss."

With renewed resolve, Wanda addressed the group. "Protect the Tesseract. For now, all we can do is wait."

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