"Sir, rumors surrounding you have resurfaced. But this time... not from the families we previously encountered. These are new players."
Nolan raised an eyebrow. "Which families?"
"The Malick and Mercer families."
David's voice was cautious. "Compared to the ten prominent houses we've encountered before, these two are older ancient, really. They operate more like sovereign states, with influence reaching every layer of modern society."
The name stirred something distant in Nolan's memory. "E.L.L., pull everything you can on the Malick family."
Instantly, a cascade of reports filled the lab's central display. News articles, intercepted communications, internal HYDRA files—E.L.L. compiled it all.
"I see. You're dismissed for now. I'll handle it."
"Understood. Wishing you a productive day, Superman," David said with a faint smile before the call ended.
Nolan crossed his arms, gaze fixed on the screen. "E.L.L., trace all activity from the Malick and Mercer families. Prioritize any connection to known HYDRA bases."
"Affirmative. Correlation confirmed. Previous HYDRA incursion against Oscorp was routed through a dockyard owned by the Malick estate."
Viper had made her move not long ago, and now this. Their ambitions clearly hadn't died. But trying to use media pressure?
Nolan didn't have any family.
What were they going to threaten? His reputation?
"Start a full database sweep. I want everything locations, movements, past ops. Cross-reference with HYDRA's shadow council and sleeper agents."
The name Malick tickled something deeper. From his past life, maybe... a thread from a long-forgotten plotline?
He dropped a vial of Kitty Pryde's blood into the analysis unit.
Immediately, the pain hit.
Far worse than any prior enhancement.
Nolan felt like his body was being torn apart at the molecular level. His cells were unraveling into raw data and reconstructing themselves all at once. It was agony unlike anything else—hot, sharp, and endless.
This wasn't like absorbing fire resistance or muscle mass.
A true molecular shift.
If anyone else, even most superhumans, tried this, they'd black out from the shock alone. Nolan slumped into his chair, pale and sweating. But then...
A familiar warmth radiated from his core.
[Self-Evolution] his trump card began repairing the cellular devastation, soothing the raw pain as his system stabilized.
He reached toward the lab table.
His fingers passed through it.
Molecules flattened, dispersed, and flowed into the table's matter field without disrupting either structure. He could feel phase alignment, molecular mimicry, and cohesion at a subatomic level.
Right now? He could phase only his hand.
Eventually? Quantum states.
"Once I hit quantum resonance... I'll be able to slip across timelines. Past. Future. Multiversal threads."
He smirked. "Time travel by thought alone."
But he knew better than to rush. Not after what happened with Dormammu. The Time Stone still sat dormant in his vault untouched. Using it before he fully mastered these powers would be asking for disaster.
Connors hurried into the lab. "Sir?"
"Break this blood sample into usable X-gene segments. I want replication-ready templates. We're entering Phase Two."
The idea was to develop a system that could simulate mutant abilities for testing and refinement a humane approach, unlike Trask's crude methods or the military's gene-splicing programs.
Connors disappeared into the sample lab.
"Sir," E.L.L. chimed in. "From the Nightcrawler Database: one individual was tracking the Malick family. A high-priority target."
"Yes. A former S.H.I.E.L.D. agent known as 'Quake'—real name, Skye."
Of course. Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Skye was one of their core members. Their series focused on dismantling HYDRA's operations and exposing its global reach.
They were part of HYDRA's ancient bloodline and its true origins.
HYDRA hadn't just splintered it had devolved into cells. Red Skull's modern network had scattered, but their old bloodlines, like Malick, remained powerful.
If HYDRA was trying to reassert its influence now, it meant one thing: Inhumans.
Not just mutants... a whole different species. And behind them, the real threat:
Hive the Inhuman parasite, HYDRA's ancient god.
That was who the Malicks served.
"Why come after me?" Nolan mused aloud. "Are they desperate enough to court the Malick call for help?"
Modern HYDRA lacked central leadership. After S.H.I.E.L.D. self-destructed, their scattered remnants relied more on assassinations than infiltration. If they were going back to media warfare and proxy influence, it meant desperation.
But Hive's presence changed things.
Nolan had always been curious about the Inhumans. Technologically advanced, genetically diverse... and they lived on the moon now, under their king:
A man whose whisper could crack a planet.
If you were ranking threats?
He was on Magneto's level maybe higher.
Was just getting started.
[Support with 200 PowerStones = 1 Bonus Chapter]
For early access to advanced Chapters on p@treon:
Thank you so much for your support and for reading!q