The following day, it was time to plan a final stand against Agatha. Illyana had already been compromised when Agatha tracked Laura to her apartment and exposed her undercover identity. That left Erik and Katherine as the only ones who still had their identities concealed. Unfortunately for them, both the Hong Kong and the London Sanctums had heightened security significantly, making it almost impossible for either of them to continue their undercover activities. They needed to finalize a plan of action and move quickly before Agatha did something unexpected and made things infinitely more difficult for them.
But first, Laura wanted to see how Katherine and Illyana were doing after the events of the previous night. Just as the sun rose, and she woke up in Katherine's bed, which was empty, she called out to Alex in her head.
[Mind taking me to the hotel they are in? I wanna surprise them.]
[Hotel? They are in Limbo.]
[I'm not surprised. How long?]
[A month. Those two are insatiable.]
[Seriously? A month?]
[Yep. As I've understood from observing Kamala and your copy, repressed sexual desires can indeed burst out almost violently when they are finally released. Especially with the right kind of catalyst.]
[As long as they are enjoying it. I guess. How much longer do you think they will last?]
[I'll take you in and show you.]
[You're going to try to involve me in it…]
[No, they are practically done. Walk through, I'll show you.]
A portal formed in front of Laura, showing the empty landscape of Illyana's Limbo dimension.
"I feel like you're going to entangle me with those two…" Laura sighed and walked through. As she went through the protective membrane, her ears were immediately assaulted by the sound of Illyana and Katherine's loud moans.
She turned to the source and saw the duo entangled on a bed, restrained by leather straps.
Unconsciously, a whistle escaped Laura's lips as she smiled in amusement.
Illyana had her arms tied behind her back while her legs were folded and restrained in a frog-tie. A ring gag forced her mouth open, making it impossible for her to close it as she looked into Katherine's eyes. The brunette's arms were wrapped around Illyana's torso and restrained in place while her legs were entangled between Illyana's frogtie and restrained as well, such that both their crotches were in direct contact. Their hips were swaying as Katherine sucked Illyana's breasts, reasing her blonde partner.
"Are those butt plugs?" Laura raised a brow as she saw something shining as the women swayed their hips.
[Yes. They may seem passionate, but they are running on fumes now.]
"Of course, they are. It's been a month."
Soon, both women released loud moans that signified the conclusion of their session. Laura saw how both of them went limp in their respective restraints and lost consciousness. Moments later, a black substance wrapped itself around both of them, pulling them close together.
[Say hello to them once they wake up. I'm curious to see their reactions.]
Laura shook her head with a sigh and approached the bed. She had a slightly judgmental expression as she looked down at the two women entangled with each other while encased in what could only be described as a latex sleep sack for couples that forced them to stick to each other.
"These two up yet?" She asked.
[Just call out to them.]
"Hey girls," Laura said loudly as both Katherine and Illyana's eyes fluttered open. Faint groans escaped their mouths but were muffled due to the mask that covered their nose and face.
A visible sense of panic appeared in both their eyes as they saw Laura, and suppressed signs of struggle appeared on their shared sleep sack.
"Yeah, he's going to play with you two for the rest of your lives," Laura said with a disappointed tone. The two continued struggling, trying to say something, but they couldn't get free or even get rid of the gags in their mouths. "Do you know it's been over three months?" She lied. "With Apex feeding you two aphrodisiac laced nutrient solutions, you haven't realized it and have spent three months indulging in debauchery. He's so deeply entangled himself in your minds that even if you do get rid of him, you won't be able to stop craving his presence. Seriously, without him, your dysfunctional relationship would all but crumble into ashes."
Amidst their struggle, their eyes grew hazy and unfocused. Laura immediately noticed the change in their state and sighed.
"Seriously, you two are pitiful…" Laura said, with disappointment shining in her eyes as the two women convulsed and shook. "No self-control and no endurance. In front of Apex, you two are truly going to be reduced to sex slaves whom he assigns some tasks to occasionally."
As they recovered, taking deep breaths with difficulty due to the gags covering half their faces, the leather sleep sack started receding toward their necks, turning into identical collars. The only clothing articles that remained on their bodies were the masks covering half their faces and two pairs of matching black thongs and bras, with the fabric looking like it was constantly stirring.
Their limbs freed, they tried to pry the masks off, but to no avail. Their efforts were useless.
"All right, enough playing, get up, you two. It's time to design your new costumes." Laura said, only to receive confused looks from both women. "What? You get new uniforms with Apex's special touch added. Now get up!"
[I'd listen to her. She has a bit of a playful yet humiliating, sadistic streak.]
Both women heard Apex's voice in their heads, making them groan helplessly. Losing their fiestiness, they slowly slid off the bed and stood up on shaky legs in front of Laura.
"Hmm…" She looked at them thoughtfully. "Stop squirming, will you?"
"Mm!" They both looked outraged as their sole articles of clothing continued stirring, making it impossible for them to stand still.
"Oh, my bad," Laura chuckled. "Apex, will you please?"
With her words, their underwear stopped stirring, and the masks on their faces receded.
"Laura," Illyana huffed. "What the hell…"
"What? You failed to make the right kind of impression on him," she said. "I wanted him to make you two primary hosts, but you two just got so lost in pleasure that he didn't see any true value in doing so. So, here we are."
"You sound douchey, Laura, dear," Katherine spoke with an english accent, pulling off a condencending vibe despite her current exposed state. "Can you stop that?"
Laura laughed.
"Fine, I was just playing around with you guys," she said. Casual clothing formed over Illyana and Katherine. They felt some slight tugging on their hair and some movement all over their skin, and suddenly, they seemed as if they were freshly showered and ready for their day. "Perfect, now you don't look like you've spent months fucking and living on nutrient solutions."
Both of their eyes widened at the mention of that nutrient solution.
"What is that solution? It's addictive. It tastes like whatever I want, and it always seems to keep me energized."
"What she said."
"Trust me, you'd rather not know," Laura said. "Just imagine him putting stuff into a blender and giving it to you like a smoothie. One that he occasionally laces with an aphrodisiac."
"Is that why… we spent a month… three months…Here?" Illyana asked.
"Apex said it's only been a month."
"That tells me that you had even less self-awareness than I expected. You only spent a month. Honestly, girls, I know I told you that Apex is safe and awesome, but he is very addictive in terms of pleasure. You two seriously need to learn moderation."
"You're worrying for no reason," Illyana said. "Time doesn't pass in Limbo."
"That's what makes it even more dangerous. I'm sure that you've realized it by now, but Apex loves submission. What you might not have realized is that he is more than just a playful dominant who likes to tie you up and force orgasms out of you. When his sadistic side comes out, he does a play called orgasm denial. And trust me, when you remove time as a factor from that, it's the most harrowing thing you can imagine. That's the path you two are headed down right now. A few more sessions like this and you'll crave it all the damn time. Before you know it, he has you two wrapped in a layer of latex that acts like a second skin. It's like a full-body chastity cage. You two will lose your minds once Apex decides that he wants to do that with you."
Both Illyana and Katherine had peeved expressions on their faces.
"Repeat after me, 'we will— repeat!'
"We will…""We will…"
"We will make sure to keep our pleasure under control and be stern with Apex whenever he commands us to do something that we do not want to do. We may have surrendered our bodies to him, but he still needs to keep things in moderation to make sure that his amusement does not hamper our daily lives."
"Surrendered our bodies?" Just as the two of them finished repeating Laura's words, Illyana spoke up.
"Yes. When you accepted the deal to have him benefit you, you lost the opportunity to separate from him. He is now a part of both of your lives, forever."
"That means…"
"Yes, Kitty," Laura nodded. "The pleasure as well. From what I've heard from his summary of the previous night…month, both of your responses are very enjoyable to him. I think you guys are going to work very well together."
"That sounds too corporate for my comfort, Laura," Katherine said. "But I appreciate your words."
-x-X-x-
In the living room of Katherine's apartment, Doctor Strange, Peter, and Magneto sat with confused and speechless looks at the three women who had emerged from Katherine's bedroom.
"Are you three creating a cult together?" Doctor Strange asked when he looked at Laura, Illyana, and Katherine.
"What are you talking about?"
"Your outfits," he said. "All these dark colors…those chokers… and you have a general eerie feeling."
"It's just your imagination," Illyana said. "We just went shopping yesterday while you guys were all planning things."
"About that. You missed out on critical details."
"Yeah… See, we need to move quickly. Before Agatha calls in any backup. With you guys supporting us, I should have the capacity to handle her and whatever plans she has."
"You don't want to give her the time to call this so-called overlord that you keep warning us about," Erik said.
"If you aren't going to believe me, it's fine," Laura said. "Now that Apex is awake, I'll just take care of everything myself. We already accomplished my main goal with this little league that you guys created."
"What?" Katherine asked instinctively.
"Getting you two, silly," Laura said with a smile. "Now that he has a secondary bond with you, he will allow you to be his proxies on this planet once I get rid of Agatha. Goodbye."
A red mist appeared around Laura as it wrapped around her and teleported her away.
"That was Chaos Magic…" Doctor Strange said with a frown.
"Maybe her words have some merit," Erik said.
"We do not have the capacity to face Harkness head-on, Erik."
"Maybe not, but her confidence does not seem unfounded. Maybe if we work with her, there might be a possibility…"
As the two old men conversed, Peter noticed that Illyana and Katherine had slightly lost looks on their faces.
"You guys okay?" He asked, not butting his head in between the two old men.
"Just a little confused, is all," Illyana said. "Laura changed things too suddenly. These two old men won't care about any of that, but… I don't know what I'm trying to get to. It's all confusing."
[No need to worry about her. She's just an impatient brat. She just wants a good fight, and waiting for Erik and Strange to come up with a plan frustrates her. Especially since they don't completely believe her.]
Illyana didn't even hear Peter's response as Apex's voice brought all her attention to it.
…
When Laura reappeared, she was floating high above the London Sanctum, undetectable by their means of monitoring. A red glow surrounded her as Alex used abilities based on Chaos Magic to test his newly improved abilities with it.
"What are we doing here?" Laura asked. "I thought that we would directly attack Agatha."
Black slime separated from Laura's figure and condensed into a tall male figure who wore a black suit.
"I want to dismantle the three sanctums first. I have been able to deduce pretty much all of Wanda's motivations, but the reason for making this entire planet focused on Chaos is beyond me. I cannot understand why she would use the Reality Stone to modify reality to such a great extent. What is the need to make Chaos Energy so prevalent throughout the entire planet? If anything, that should be consuming her resources. There's an angle that I'm unable to get, and I want to see what it is."
"Okay, so how do we find that angle?"
"The three sanctums. Kamar Taj. These four places are placed at the most prominent intersections of the magical ley lines of this planet. The London Sanctum produces money. Chaos chips and the higher-grade chaos crystals. I want to see how those chips and crystals are processed and maintained. What happens to the empty ones that are taken back by the authorities?"
"Okay, so how do we do this?"
"We go in and subdue everyone. If Agatha comes along, you can play with her for a while."
"Oh, so subtlety is out the window now."
"I go through mood swings," Alex said. "Now that I've spent a month satisfying my desires with two very repressed, very slutty bisexual women, I am more interested in moving on to something substantial. Plus, I will soon have the capability to create psionic shields. I won't have to be scared of old Charles anymore."
"Can we do a joint superhero landing? We'll burst through the roof of the building."
"Sure."
Alex and Laura started descending from the sky toward the building, slowly picking up speed.
They dove through the sky as Alex grabbed Laura's hand and guided her in the correct direction.
[This might not have been the best idea…]
[It's an amazing idea.] Alex laughed in Laura's head and pulled her closer, grabbing her waist.
[No, Alex. This is definitely a bad idea. I thought that we would simply jump into the building, breaking the roof. I really don't want to free-fall down into the building from thousands of meters in the sky.]
[You'll be fine even if we fly through the planet. Maybe you'll be a little burnt and scratched up, but that's all. That's how durable your Low Cosmic Physique is.]
[No, Alex. I really think we should fly and blow through the roof before diving headfirst into it. What if they have protections?] Laura was tightly holding Alex with her arms and legs wrapped around him as she buried her face in his neck.
[No… Am I gauging it correctly? Is my battle maniac, masochist host afraid of heights?]
[No! I just don't feel comfortable falling from heights. I hate being squished.]
[Why would you… Oh.]
[Yeah. Testing my healing factor included throwing me from tall heights and seeing how quickly I would regenerate. So, could you please slow down now? I know that we are durable, but I am really not comfortable with this.]
[Fine…] Alex shook his head as a red aura erupted from him, surrounding his and Laura's figures. Suddenly, the g-forces affecting them reduced significantly as the air stilled.
Laura opened her eyes, pulling her head back from Alex as she looked at her surroundings through the red membrane surrounding her and Alex.
"We're still falling at the same speed, but the air around us is stable. You don't feel like you are in freefall anymore, do you?"
"Yeah…" Laura calmed down a little.
"So, scared of heights," Alex said teasingly. "That gives me a very interesting idea."
"It's the feeling I get when I'm in freefall, Alex. I really don't like when my insides churn like that."
"We'll test those limits eventually. How do you feel about being tied up and hanging in the air, thousands of meters above sea level? We already did some underwater stuff related to that. We should try doing it high in the air as well."
"I'm pretty sure you'll have to force hormonal orgasms out of me because I can't imagine feeling aroused in the slightest without something under me. Underwater stuff was indeed pretty hot, but this does not seem like that."
"You'll never know if you don't try."
"It's not like my refusal is going to deter you…" she sighed.
"We're close," Alex said. "Get ready to make whatever pose you want."
"Wait, what pose are you going to do? I don't want to look stupid."
"You decide. I was just going to stand there."
"What? No Superman landing? I want us to land and look like we just punched the ground. I'll control my force just enough that some cracks form, but nothing beyond."
"I'm just going to teleport directly into the next sanctum," Alex said helplessly as the sphere surrounding him and Laura broke through the dome on top of the building and dispelled. He and Laura both landed in the middle of the main hall as immediately as tens of portals surrounded them.
"Tresspassers, surrender!" The Master of the sanctum exclaimed as multiple masters of the mystic arts emerged from the portals.
Alex and Laura shared a look as Laura's suit took up its lightning-enhanced form, and she sped up to incapacitate their closest enemy. Before anyone could react to her movement, she had thrown away five people. As for Alex, he was concentrating on a sphere of Chaos Energy that was condensed between his hands.
The sanctum master reacted quickly and slammed his palm on the ground, immediately spreading a massive magic circle throughout the massive hall. Laura's immense speed was suddenly hampered as her movements slowed. She frowned, realizing that the spell was troublesome for her as it gave the enemies time to cast their spells.
Before she could do anything, multiple restraining spells shot toward her: golden chains, multicolored bands, and more.
"Yah!" She shouted, and multiple bolts of lightning burst out of her, directly striking the spells, yet they were only enough to take care of some of the spells, while the others swiftly reached her.
Within moments, she was wrapped up in multiple restraining spells that were impossible for her to break through.
"Alex!" She exclaimed in a comically slow manner. [Are you going to keep standing there?] She had to communicate telepathically. Otherwise, by the time her sentence finished under the slowing spell, she would have been taken to the dungeon.
Her exclamation brought the sanctum master's attention to the calm man who seemed to have a much lower presence than the woman. He had easily repelled the restraining spells that were shot toward him by the masters. Not only that, but he was also completely unaffected by the slowing spell.
"Seriously, Laura. Just because I'm here doesn't mean you can get reckless," Alex sighed as he slammed the sphere between his hands on the ground.
A massive shockwave of Chaos Energy pushed everyone back, dispelling the spells that they had cast and consequently freeing Laura from the bindings.
"All right, I've gauged my level of power now," Alex said as a second burst of Chaos energy escaped from him and threw everyone back, including the Sanctum Master.
"You could've done that the whole time?" Laura asked as she looked at the incapacitated sorcerers all around her.
"You're saying that as if we've been fighting them for a few minutes. The reason you got caught was your recklessness. Unless you learn, I'll make sure that you understand the consequences of thoughtlessly charging into enemies."
"W-who are you?" The Sanctum Master staggered back up to his feet and asked.
"You're still conscious." Laura looked surprised.
"I'm Apex, Sanctum Master," Alex said politely. "I'm here to see what it is that you guys do with the used Chaos chips that have no Chaos energy in them to speak of. The crystals have no real value to speak of, which means you are getting something from those that have been used. I want to know what that is."
"I don't have a choice, do I?"
"Agatha can't do anything to me," Alex said. "That's why she hasn't appeared yet. She is preparing, scheming, looking for a way to take care of me without calling for help. Your best bet is to show me what I want, and I'll be on my way without any further bloodshed."
"I understand," the man said, fully aware of how outclassed he was against this unknown man. "Please follow me to the basement chamber where the crystals are recycled."
"Thank you," Alex said politely with a smile as he extended his arm for Laura, who promptly crossed her arm with his.
As the two walked behind the Sanctum Master, arm in arm, Laura thought of something.
[I just realized…]
[What?]
[You were just being condescending and all about me wanting to do a superhero landing.]
[I wasn't. It's just not my thing. Since you are interested, I'm happy to accommodate you.]
[That's the thing, it's not that you aren't interested in posing, you just prefer a different kind of posing.]
[What are you talking about?]
[This! I'm talking about how you smugly had me grab your arm and are leading me toward our destination with this pretentious expression on your face. You're just interested in posing as a villain.]
Alex's expression was stilled at the words Laura said.
[Don't call me out like that. Now I'm conscious…]
Laura's mirth took the form of an amused snort as the duo continued walking behind the Sanctum Master.
[You are a bit of a supervillain if we look at you objectively. It's not like these mannerisms don't suit you.]
[I don't know if that should make me feel offended or flattered.]
[That's for you to think about.]
Laura looked like she was having a lot of fun as she wrapped both hands around Alex's arm and brought it close to her chest.
"Here it is," the Sanctum Master said as he stopped in front of a large set of double doors. "I do not have the complete authority to open this door. It requires the Sorcerer Supreme's…sign…ature…"
The man trailed off in his words as a red glow covered the massive door. A clicking sound followed immediately after, and the two doors swung open.
"So this is it, huh?"
In the center of the room, a massive orb of glowing red chaos energy was floating; underneath it was a large circular formation with runes all around it. As Alex and Laura walked further in, they noticed a large funnel on the other side of the sphere. At the end of that funnel were tens of small portals through which small transparent chips and crystals came, only to be taken in by the massive sphere. Above that sphere were two portals. One with the small chips flowing through it and one with the slightly larger crystals.
"That looks pretty simple," Laura commented on the contraption. "It takes the empty crystals and refills them before sending them away to the distribution centers."
"If that were the case, I wouldn't be here trying to investigate the odd thing about these crystals, would I?" Alex examined the runes and carvings all around the room while cross-checking them with what he knew about the Darkhold.
"Find anything?"
"Hey, Sanctum Master," Alex called out. "If you don't want me to destroy this sanctum, designate me as a friendly entity. The innate protections are making it difficult for me to examine this contraption."
"I can't do such a thing," the sorcerer looked ready to die.
"Man, why do you have to make things difficult for me, huh?" Alex said with annoyance as he grabbed the sorcerer by the neck and sent Chaos energy into him.
"What are you doing?"
"Controlling him," he said. "It's easier than outright destroying a sanctum. I could use it for my purposes later."
It only took Alex a few seconds to enthrall the Sanctum Master and designate him and Laura as members of the Sanctum.
Alex then approached the massive sphere of Chaos energy that took empty currency from one end and produced new currency from the other.
"The resources of the ley lines aren't being used to power this spell… They are merely maintaining the stability of the underlying spell."
"What?" Laura asked, not clearly hearing Alex's mumbling.
"This sphere looks like it is receiving energy from somewhere else. That's why it is a consistent size despite infusing millions of chips and crystals with Chaos energy."
"I assumed that the source of this energy was the ley lines under the sanctum. Is that not the case?" She posed her doubt.
"No. The ley lines are only being used as a stabilizing agent for such a large-scale spell."
"Is it large-scale? I feel like I've seen you do grander things."
"That is like a singular burst of energy. This is consistent and perpetuated. Looking at how stable the underlying spell is, it should easily last a hundred years even if the chip production increases."
"So where's all that energy coming from?"
"I have a faint idea."
Alex knelt down in front of the magic formation under the sphere and traced along its lines, spreading a red glow through the runes that comprised the formation. With a ripple effect, it spread through the entire formation, dyeing it red. The massive sphere lightly fluctuated as if getting destabilized because of Alex's actions.
Laura was looking closely at Alex as he stood up with a frown on his face.
"What's wrong?"
"I can't pinpoint the source," he said. "It's grinding those crystals down and taking something from them, but I can't understand what it is. Then, new crystals are formed from those ground remains and sent out from the other end of this spell."
"You don't know? Damn, I thought that you knew everything."
Alex gave her a dry look, making her cough and look away awkwardly.
"You told me that you had a theory," she quickly changed the topic. "That these crystals were sucking away some kind of faith energy from the people and using it to empower Scarlet Witch."
"Yeah…" Alex agreed with a sigh. "I'd expected that I would be able to detect something or the other to be able to reverse engineer something similar. Unfortunately, it's all mystical for the time being."
"Can't you at least replicate this spell? If you do, you should be able to harvest faith energy in some form or the other."
"It would be better if I spent some time researching it and working with Wanda to make something more efficient. This chip currency system is too inefficient."
"You want to integrate this system with those Gaia Bracelets that you were talking to me about?"
"Precisely," Alex nodded. "For that, I need to understand the intricacies of faith. Everything from how it is produced to its collection and utilization. If it's anything close to Cosmic Energy, it will allow me to change everything."
"So… more planets to establish a dictatorship over?" She asked.
"You have no idea," Alex said. "I won't have to be worried about some overlaying threat and will finally be able to think about expansion."
"While you do all that, how about we move on to the next Sanctum? I wanna fight. You took care of everything too quickly here."
-x-X-x-
Alex and Laura's next destination was the New York Sanctum.
Leaving the mind-controlled Sanctum Master unconscious after freeing him from his influence, Alex created a tiny portal that led directly to their destination. However, it was far from enough for him and Laura to go through.
"What's wrong?" Laura asked.
"We're going to be walking into a trap," Alex said. "I just want to know if we can handle it or not."
"Isn't Wanda the Source of all Chaos magic in this entire universe now? What do you have to worry about?"
"She just got that power a few hours ago, going by the time difference. This new power is still in its infancy," Alex said. "I don't want to bet everything on it just yet."
"Understandable," she said. "So? Is Agatha waiting for us there?"
"She's waiting in the Hong Kong Sanctum. But the people here are just as prepared; she will appear the moment we appear in the vicinity of either of the two cities. They have our signatures."
"So what are we going to do?"
"We're going to continue our plan," he said. "I want to see just how big of a deal Death energy and necromancy are to have been restricted and forbidden so heavily."
"When I fought her, that gray, lifeless mist seemed like it would kill me if I even got close to it. It was pretty dangerous, in my opinion. Maybe if Bioenergy had any offensive applications, then it would probably be the exact antithesis to death energy."
"I could try to replicate the effects of Qi with Bioenergy, but I can't make it work."
"Why?"
"At its base, Qi is an impure form of Bioenergy," he said. "Think of it as a version of Bioenergy with certain additives. Those additives are what give Qi the offensive power that Bioenergy lacks. Now, I'm not an expert in different kinds of energies, so I don't know what those additives are. Nor can I replicate its effects with my abilities and knowledge."
"Have you tried mixing it with Chaos energy?" She asked. "Chaos energy could manipulate reality and give the offensive power to Bionenergy that it lacks."
"I already tried that," Alex said. "It could be possible if Wanda tries to use the Source of Chaos to achieve it, but with what I possess, I can't do that."
"Pity," Laura said. "So, what is the plan? I'm assuming that you aren't planning to dive headfirst into the fray if Agatha is prepared to battle you."
Alex turned to look at her and smiled.
"Laura, honey. I may call you a battle maniac, but I am the one who enables those tendencies. I'm going to strike such fear in that woman's heart that she won't have any other thought than to call for help."
Suddenly, Laura felt her thoughts clouding as a second consciousness melded with hers. Alex disappeared from her vision and melted into a mass of black slime that wrapped around her. She grew taller and got slightly bulkier while maintaining her slender look as red streaks coursing with Chaos energy appeared on her black and yellow Apex suit.
"I wonder how much better the integration would be if we went to the next step," Apex spoke in a slightly demonic voice that had hints of Laura's original voice.
They walked toward the portal as it grew larger, finally getting detected by the Sanctum's defences.
As Apex was about to pass through, the portal warped and started flickering, yet they were undaunted. The destination of the portal was forcefully shifted to make them appear in the center of the main hall.
With the appearance of Apex, several sorcerers appeared all around them as crimson lines started moving around on the floor around them. Within seconds, the massive magic formation covered the entire hall as Apex calmly stood in the center.
"A symbiote," a female voice spoke just as the magic circle was completed under Apex. "A truly terrifying lifeform. Or at least that's what the historical records we have of you told me."
In front of Apex, purple mist appeared and quickly coalesced into an oval shape. Agatha walked through the portal and stood facing them. At the same time, from inside the portal, thin bands emerged and wrapped themselves around Apex, restraining the duo completely.
"Tell me, how did you come to possess such a mastery over Chaos magic? I read that you can devour a person and gain their powers. Is that what you did with one of the copies of the Scarlet Witch?"
"Why don't you call your boss for help?" Apex spoke. "You are out of your league against us."
"I sent you running with your tail tucked between your legs twice, girl," Agatha said as the tens of sorcerers around her prepared multiple different spells. "What makes you think you can win now?"
"This," Apex said demonically as the red streaks on their suit pulsed bright crimson. Suddenly, the bands restraining them loosened up and separated. Immediately, the sorcerers shot multiple spells at Apex, yet identical bands appeared underneath all of them and restrained them, preventing any spell casting.
The same bands attempted to restrain Agatha, but they withered and turned to dust just as they got close to her gray mist.
"This evens out the playing field, I think," Apex said.
Agatha's lip curled as her eyes gained a cruel glint. Purple light radiated from her hands as her fingers moved with such fluidity that they seemed to have a mind of their own. Purple strings shot down toward the magic circle under her and Apex as it turned from red to purple.
A purple mist rose all around Apex from the magic circle as it started sucking away the Chaos energy coursing through the suit.
"You might not be aware, but I only started working with necromancy later in life." Agatha exuded smugness. "My innate ability has always been to devour. And the moment you entered this sanctum, I was ready to unleash the full power of this planet's magical network upon you. Regardless of what power you possess, you can only helplessly wait as you are reduced to a mere husk, powerless to do anything against me as I take everything you have."
"A cute plan." Apex didn't seem concerned in the slightest as Agatha's devouring took not only his reserves of Chaos energy but also traces of Bioenergy. "But I was prepared for this and more."
Apex released a similar purple light as Agatha and immediately countered her devouring force with their own.
"You said that the weight of this entire planet is behind your devouring, correct?" Apex said. "Let's see how far we can go against the foundation of a Dimension as old as time."
Apex roared loudly as their stature and frame grew even larger while the purple light of devouring intensified.
‹Soul Devour›
They called out in a deep, primal voice, and instantly, Agatha's spell was turned on her.
She was the first person to be affected and screamed in pain as a look of horror replaced her smugness entirely.
Apex's devouring force was augmented not only by the vastly superior mental energy that Alex possessed but also by the underlying Chaos energy that coursed through everything magical that he did. Apex easily scaled up the devouring force exponentially compared to Agatha.
Not only was Agatha going to be devoured by Apex, but at the current pace, the planet's ley lines weren't too far off from being sucked away entirely.
Within seconds, Agatha was the one who was left as a husk of her former self. Yet she was still alive. She was the medium between Apex and the planet's ley lines. She wouldn't die until the planet was completely devoured.
The whites of Apex's eyes glowed purple as the suction force was enhanced even more. The barrier surrounding the planet flickered as the main factor of its stablity was being sucked away by a dangerous alien.
Minutes passed, and the first major effect of the ley lines being devoured appeared in the form of a massive earthquake under the Pacific Ocean. As the ensuing tsunami took form, another earthquake formed under the African continent. Unlike the previous one, this one's effects were evident within minutes as the entire land mass shook violently and split apart through the center, and its effects extended up to Europe as well.
Millions of people were on track to die from the destruction that was caused by Apex's unrelenting devouring, yet there were no signs of him planning to stop.
As the destruction approached a level that would lead to the planet's collapse, the space above the sanctum warped. A red mist spread around and formed into a portal. Through it emerged a woman.
With a golden halo around her and a generally holy aura surrounding her despite the crimson power surrounding her, Scarlet Witch had appeared on this planet to investigate the disturbances that had occurred here.
***
"What a surprise," she spoke to herself while looking down with slight surprise. "This presence feels familiar, hmm... Was it from when I collected the fragment of the Mind Stone? Yes, there were two symbiotes on that battlefield."
She continued floating above the ground and simply waved her arm. The entire New York Sanctum was dismantled into its constituent bricks and stones that separated, opening the inside of the building up to her. In the center of the newly dismantled building stood a tall, monstrous entity with slightly feminine features that radiated a purple aura of devouring. Beside the monster was her herald, Agatha. All that was left of the woman were her bones and saggy skin that looked like it was barely attached to her bones.
"Oh dear," Wanda frowned at the sight. "She's practically dead… I'll have to look for someone else to take care of this planet now. No worries, it is barely a minor inconvenience." Wanda pointed her finger at the monster responsible for everything.
She didn't release any energy or show any signs of casting a spell, but still frowned moments later as a powerful shockwave of crimson Chaos energy was released from the monster.
Agatha's body was immediately obliterated, getting caught in the blast that destroyed a large chunk of the visible parts of the Sanctum.
"Hey! You're trespassing," Wanda announced. "This is my planet, and you can't eat it or whatever you're doing right now."
Apex looked up at Wanda as Alex and Laura separated mentally due to the massive amount of energy that was released due to repelling Wanda's attack.
Alex's first thought was about his gains from the large-scale utilization of ‹Soul Devour›.
Since it wasn't a pure devouring of living beings but of the more ethereal energy that was within the planet's ley lines, it couldn't simply be stored or added to Soul Energy. Instead, Alex directly utilized it to enhance his soul. To make it more robust and solid. With the colossal scale of energy that had been taken, he had brought the abilities of his soul to a whole different level. His focus, instead of expanding his capabilities, had been to consolidate what he already had. With his new enhancements, he could completely keep his hosts isolated even if they were in the ‹True Merge› state with him. That state wouldn't spill over to his other bodies and hosts, making it possible for him to achieve that state with multiple hosts simultaneously if necessary. The main benefit was that he was no longer worried about the Level 7 bond, which involved the nervous system and the brain.
After Laura's recent experiences with him, he had been concerned about overwhelming her sense of self if their bond went too far. But with his new enhancements, he had enough control and stability to perfectly maintain control over such a situation. Not to mention, doing the process with multiple hosts would've made things more complex and risky for both him and his hosts.
"Hmm… I'm going to start investing more in my soul's enhancement from now on," Alex said as he separated from Laura. "Especially if I'm going to form more of these secondary and tertiary bonds."
"How peculiar," Wanda spoke with a curious tone as she descended before Agatha's corpse. With the interruption of the devouring spell, Agatha's connection was also broken. Without serving as the medium that allowed Apex to devour the energy from the planet's ley lines, she immediately died. "You have autonomy and sentience."
"That and more," Alex said. "How are you doing, Wanda?"
"Please, I prefer Scarlet Angel," she said. "Do tell, why are you here, and why are you ruining everything? Did you somehow not notice the planet-wide barrier surrounding this large rock? There are thirty-five unclaimed planets that you could have gone for."
"I saw you take the Mind Stone from William," Alex said.
"Oh, were you planning to take it?" She asked. "Well, finders-keepers. If that's all, allow me to send you on your way."
"Hold up," Alex said. "I have a question. What are you doing with those crystals? This whole system with chaos chips that you are spreading through all five of your planets. What are you doing with it?"
"Wouldn't you like to know?" She said. "Too bad. You will have to figure it out by yourself."
"You are trying to find some way to use the Infinity Stone fragments without any backlash, aren't you?"
"Tread carefully, symbiote," Wanda said. "You may not be able to live much longer if you go too far."
"The name's Apex," he said, undaunted. "We could work together, you know."
"You are desperate to mitigate the backlash of using the Stones, aren't you?" She said. "Do you know why it is so bad?"
"Probably because the stones are fragmented. If they were whole, channeling their power through a medium or an artifact would have been much more straightforward."
"Anywho, time to leave, tata~," she said. Immediately, a portal was formed behind Alex and Laura that sucked them inside it.
"Seriously? Do you think sending me to the sun is going to be enough to kill me?" Alex said with a scoff as he and Laura disappeared into the portal. "Your troubles are just starting, Wanda."
The voice echoed through the room as Wanda frowned. With a thought from her, everything in her surroundings ceased to exist and vanished.
"I feel like this symbiote is going to be more trouble than I thought…"
"You have no idea, Wanda." A mystic arts portal formed in front of her as Alex walked through it, alone. "Hi, how are you doing?"
…
"What's wrong?" Laura asked as she appeared in a familiar bedroom. She was back on Farm Earth, in the White House. "I thought we were going to fight her."
"Fight her?" Alex asked with a laugh. "I'm going to such that woman dry of everything she has. First off, the person we encountered was just an incarnation of her real self. Second, did you see how perfect and seamless her spells were? Not a hint of Chaos energy was leaked, no matter what spell she cast. Not to mention, I sensed hints of multiple authorities on her. She has quite a few Infinity Stones, and if I want them, I have to play my cards correctly. Third, with the way she responded, I am confident that she has a way to use the Infinity Stones freely, and it must have something to do with that whole faith system that she keeps advocating everywhere."
"What about the others?" She asked. "Kitty and Yana."
"They're all fine," Alex said. "I have a different task for them."
"What?"
"I'm still figuring that out."
"I thought that you would send them to join the Widows on my Earth."
"I was going to do that initially. The two of them and Ororo would've done well there," Alex said.
"Ororo?" Laura asked, frowning.
"Don't you remember? I met her during the recruitment process for Kamar Taj. She's the only one, aside from me, who survived. I've already formed a Tertiary Bond with her. I was going to send her to the Widows alongside Illyana and Katherine. But after what just happened, I will use them to infiltrate Scarlet Angel's other planets and eventually take control of her entire regime. You wanted them to have a more active role in terms of my subordinates. That gives them some very important things to do."
"I guess that works as well. But we didn't get any real battles. You just sucked the life out of Agatha and I didn't even get to fight her."
"You will have ample time to fight once we move to Earth-Z. It's time for my Widows to take over Stark's Bastion. I want to expand the Sanctuary's operations and bring your planet into Gaia now."
"Should we go right now? I don't really feel like involving myself with the kinky plays you do with MJ and Felicia right now."
"Well, you'll be glad to hear that I no longer have a primary bond with MJ," Alex said. "She's been demoted to tertiary."
"You can do that?" Laura asked.
"Not really," Alex said. "It was a pretty tiresome process and only worked because of how little emotional attachment I had toward her and never bothered deepening the bond significantly."
"Well, good for her," Laura said. "What's she doing now that she isn't permanently tied up in either that cage or in the dungeon?" Laura pointed at the cage beside the bed.
"She's now permanently tied up on the farm," He said.
"You finished that place?" Laura asked.
"Only a little while ago," he said. "The system isn't yet fully automated because Gaia is still being trained and developed. That's going to take a year or so more."
"You've finally fulfilled your greatest perverted dream," Laura said with a defeated sigh. "Treating women as cattle."
"Do we need to have that conversation again?" Alex asked. "The only ones there are women on death row. Instead of dying, they are now benefiting society as a whole. Plus, MJ isn't the only pervert who decided that such a life sounds enjoyable."
"Seriously?" Laura looked disturbed. "There were women who voluntarily entered that prison?"
"Enthusiastically, might I add," he said. "A number of hardcore sex clubs have clientele that is into such extreme things."
"I fear for the future of humanity, Alex. I genuinely fear for what might happen to humans after they are under your rule for a hundred years."
"Immense prosperity," Alex said. "I'm a dictator who has ambition beyond imposing power over my people. Right now, I am doing everything from the shadows, but once your planet gets integrated into Gaia… That will be the true advent of my empire."
"You'll finally be an actual dictator instead of one who operates from the shadows."
"At one point, every dictatorship has the potential to become a monarchy. And for that to be accomplished, we need time."
"And time is something you have an abundance of, considering how heavy the time dilation here is."
"Naturally."
"Come on, take me home," Laura said as she grabbed his hand and tugged lightly. "I wanna beat up some abominations."
-x-X-x-
With Laura sent away, Alex started his rivalry with Wanda's variant. Over the period of a few weeks, he infiltrated all five of the planets under her control, and no matter how hard she tried to eradicate him entirely, his real self was in another dimension. This made sure that such a result was impossible. Over that period, the little Mystic League formed by Doctor Strange and Magneto had grown into a much more substantial resistance force. Under the leadership of Illyana and Katherine, both of whom had a direct line of communication with Apex, they were able to cause some real trouble for Wanda.
Of course, Apex and the Mystic League didn't cause too much trouble and kept their actions limited to disrupting Wanda's management. They didn't interfere with any of her faith collection or the main currency system on any of those planets. That was by design since Alex didn't yet want to get rid of her. He only wanted to make it difficult for her to add more worlds into her system for the time being.
As time passed, however, Wanda was faced with her first major loss against him on Earth-65. The loss of two Infinity Stone fragments. That had left her positively irked and infuriated as she launched a major assault against the Mystic League and Apex. Unfortunately for her, this was also the time when Alex and Wanda had completed the Chaos Tower. An artifact of unimaginable complexity that served as the new medium for the Source of Chaos. He maintained the facade of being pressured, but it was all under his control as he schemed to take more of the Scarlet Angel's accumulation.
In the meantime, on Earth-21798B.
After establishing the Chaos Tower and Apex City, it was time to establish a functioning system to run things. As reluctant as Wanda was to involve herself with management, she was absolutely necessary for the initial setup of the management system because a lot of things had to be automated.
So, things got delayed for almost a week as Wanda refused to listen and wanted to celebrate the creation of the tower and city instead.
Ultimately, it took tying her up and threatening her with prolonged denial of pleasure before she agreed to get some work done.
"All right, now let me down," she said while restrained against the wall. The stone wall had extended outward and had encased the entirety of her limbs, leaving only her torso and head free. "I can't even move my fingers."
"You promise?" Alex asked. "I have ways around your Chaos Source, Wanda. If you try to circumvent things again, your next orgasm may very well be your last in a while."
"Fine, fine, I get it, Alex," Wanda rolled her eyes. "I won't try to manipulate reality to make it that we were already in the middle of sex… again."
"I'll hold you to that," he said as he pointed at her threateningly. The wall receded from Wanda's limbs and freed her. Immediately, she jumped at Alex and wrapped her arms and legs around him.
"Wanda…"
"I didn't use any magic," she spoke close to his ear while swaying her hips and pushing her crotch toward him.
A tired sigh escaped Alex's mouth as he placed his hands on Wanda's hips and walked out to the balcony that overlooked Apex City below them and the crimson-tinted sky all around them.
"First order of business. The city and its residential system," Alex said. "How do you want to play this? A simple city or somewhere mystical?"
"Do we have to do this?" Wanda asked.
"Come on," Alex smiled lightly as he raised his hand and traced his fingers along her spine.
"Mm…" Wanda shivered a little and closed her eyes.
"Tell me. I want this to be more than just my city."
Wanda exhaled audibly, and Alex stopped moving her fingers, placing his palm on her lower back.
"Are you familiar with The-Powers-That-Be?"
Alex froze at Wanda's words.
"I'll take that as a yes," she said. "Now, if you have an idea about them, you probably also have an idea about the dimension that was manifested due to the large influence of witchcraft in the universe?"
"All I know is that another abstract entity called Witchcraft serves as the source of power for both witches and wizards who practice witchcraft. I assume that the dimension you're talking about is the Witches' Road."
"Hmm?" Wanda frowned. "I don't have any information about the concept of witchcraft gaining sentience. That is probably a universal abstract that has not yet reached the full scale of the multiverse, like the primaries such as Death, Eternity, and the like. You are talking about an isolated entity."
"Maybe," Alex said. "But you are talking about the Witches' Road when you say witchcraft dimension, correct?"
"Yes," Wanda nodded. "My thought was to make Apex City such a place for all magically inclined entities related to me."
"It's a good thing that I didn't start working on the city's infrastructure then," Alex said. "How about we make it a sort of game?"
"I was thinking the same thing," Wanda said. "When a witch taps into the Witches' Road and starts channeling it through them, their powers are increased exponentially. Their spells become more potent; simpler incantations are enough to cast complex spells and more. Apex City could be a similar place."
"It's possible," Alex said. "But we can't manually increase their power every time, we need a better process."
"That's where the tower comes in, Alex." Wanda grabbed his face between both her hands. "The Chaos Tower will be the heart of Apex City. It has already streamlined the drawing of Chaos energy from my source, turning it into isolated channels that are independent from me, yet still fall under my control, allowing me to interface with them whenever I desire to. We have barely scratched the surface of the powers of this tower."
"I can make some sense of the vision that you have in mind," Alex said. "From what I have seen, there are two kinds of practitioners who utilize Chaos energy for the time being. The first kind is the myriad variants of Scarlet Witch, all of which draw upon your source directly. The second are, in essence, subordinates who draw upon the Chaos energy possessed by their respective patron Scarlet Witches, and cast Chaos magic through the energy that they possess."
"These patron Scarlet Witches are probably the ones who have the real copies of the Darkhold," Wanda said.
"Why do you think so?"
"Because I have a spell," she said. "This spell allows me to draw a special energy—I'll call it faith for simplicity's sake. It is not faith, mind you. It doesn't work on belief. What that spell does is that it draws upon the power of a person's emotions. When I use this spell to give someone access to my power, that person's thoughts and emotions are sent to me as feedback whenever he or she pulls on my energy. That feedback can then be converted into raw Chaos energy, or I can use it to empower my Source of Chaos. That is how I can make my source stronger by allowing more people to pull energy from me."
"Well, fuck," Alex said. "Is that also the spell that allowed me to use Chaos magic? That ‹Host of the Scarlet Witch› thing that I used to have."
"No, that was different," she shook her head. "It was me instinctively connecting myself to your soul. You were a sort of literal host for my tether. You told me your soul gained a red glow because of my actions. That was because of my tether connecting our souls together. That is also what allowed you to use Chaos magic through me."
"Convoluted…" Alex commented. "Let us move back to the main topic. I get that you receive this feedback from everyone who pulls energy from you. What about their subordinates?"
"What do you mean?"
"Let's take the example of Scarlet Angel," Alex said. "That woman has multiple planets with many subordinates who pull on her power to use Chaos energy-based Mystic Arts. What about them? Do they give you any feedback?"
"No," Wanda refused. "You remember when we learned the theories about principalities during my education in Kamar Taj?"
"Exocentric magic, yes," Alex nodded.
"That's how this system functions in essence," she said. "I am the principality for those who draw Chaos energy from me, and those Scarlet Witches are the principalities for those who draw Chaos energy from them. I only get feedback from those who directly call upon my power. I don't get any indirect feedback."
"Well, the first order of business should be to start getting that feedback."
"Yes, and that's where my image for Apex City comes in," she said. "It's large enough that we can house millions of witches here easily. Give each of them a small territory that they can expand by either battling each other or by contributing resources to the expansion of the city. The larger your territory, the greater your connection to the tower."
"What about the witches that lose their territory?"
"Relegated to the periphery and forced to start again," she said.
"How about this…" Alex thought of something. "Instead of making the territory larger, we can simply move their domain closer to the tower, where the concentration of Chaos energy is greater. Since this place is going to be entirely mystical, we don't have to be bound by conventional rules of space. Every so-called territory can be its own pocket of space. We can divide this entire city into an organized grid that makes it easier for us to manage things, but for those who live inside the city, things should be flexible. They should be able to manipulate the space within their domain by spending certain amounts of Chaos energy."
"Oh, how about a physical representation of how much Chaos energy they have available? They can only use Chaos magic so long as their domain has Chaos energy. Once it is exhausted, you have to wait for it to replenish."
"That's doable..."
Alex and Wanda spent the next few hours brainstorming the system for the upcoming city and quickly started implementing all of their plans so that they could bring in the witches who were directly connected to Wanda's Chaos Source into the city.
-x-X-x-
Île de la Cité, Paris.
Inside a massive medieval Catholic Cathedral, a feminine figure calmly stood on the stone altar, bathing under the faint glow of the moonlight that shone through the shattered rose window—her entry point. She stood poised as parts of her glassy black suit reflected the moonlight that complemented her silvery hair. On her face sat a simple black mask that went around her eyes. Jumping down from the altar with a silent leap, she landed on the mosaic floor of the choir with the elegance of a cat. In her right hand, she held the Crown of Thorns.
She paused momentarily, looking at the priceless artifact of the ages with a sense of wonder and satisfaction. A woman's loud cry, followed by an explosion, broke her out of her reverie, and her eyes widened. She placed the crown within the satchel on her waist and bolted toward an exit while moving silently and cautiously behind the carved wooden pews.
Outside the Notre-Dame de Paris, a violent battle raged as explosions and horrific screams continued reaching her ears. She, however, was undaunted as she reached a supporting column and started climbing. Firmly grasping the worn-out stone and the carvings, she climbed up to the scaffolding that lined the north transept. As she pulled herself up on the ledge, she finally caught sight of her destination—the South Tower.
"Thief!" A sudden exclamation made her eyes widen, and she suddenly ducked. A large projectile whipped past her head and struck the stone wall ahead of her. The ensuing explosion sent dust flying everywhere, yet the wall showed no signs of damage.
"Thank fuck, these bitches don't have any more of that empowerment going for them. I would never in a million years have the guts to do this if the hotspot hadn't dried out a few days ago…" The silver-haired woman felt goosebumps rise as she quickly started moving forward, using the temporary smokescreen created by the blast as her cover to grab a beam above her. She swung from it and kicked the witch in the face before any alarms could be raised.
She quickly climbed back up to the ledge and moved to the top, with the Emmanuel Bell looming above her head. Through the arched window, she could see the ensuing conflict underneath her. On one side were the French police, in a desperate struggle against thirty witches. For the time being, neither side looked like they had an advantage, but the officers looked like they were more on the defensive side.
"They're trying to stall while they wait for backup. If this hotspot doesn't start spewing whatever energy it does, these witches are done for. Whatever, not like I have anything to do with them after today," she sounded smug as she turned her gaze a little higher across the Seine and focused on the Palais de Justice.
Pulling out her grappling gun, she took aim and quickly shot it at a gothic spire. The hook shot forward and firmly anchored itself to the tall spire.
As she prepared to leap away, loud exclamations from the witches drew her attention. They were suddenly gaining ground. Their previously multi-colored magic was now predominantly red, and they seemed to be overwhelming the police, to say the least.
"That hotspot… It's active again." Without an ounce of hesitation, she leaped from the Notre-Dame, wanting to get away before anyone caught wind of her heist.
"Stop right there!" One of the witches cried out at her as the bold burglar woman soared through the air. Without needing any chant, the witch brought her hands together and gathered a red mist between her palms.
The woman saw the witch's action in slow motion as she soared through the air, her heart thumping violently. The witch's hands shot forward before she could figure out any way to interrupt or prevent the spell from being cast. She braced herself for impact, tightly closing her eyes as death approached her.
It never came, and instead, the witch was on her knees due to a stray explosive spell that had landed near her, preventing her from completing her spell.
"For once in my life, lucky me, I guess…" What she hadn't noticed was the red glow that appeared all around her when she closed her eyes.
She continued looking at the two forces battling it out as she made her way across the rover and to her destination. Despite the overwhelming disadvantage that they suffered, the police had served to keep the witches occupied just long enough that she was able to land stably on top of the Palais de Justice.
She stowed away the grappling gun and tapped a few times on her watch as a ringing sound came from it.
"What?"
"Heya, KP. Guess who has the Crown of Thorns?"
"You have it. Amazing work, kitten. I'll get you extracted. Where are you right now?"
"Top of the Palais de Justice. Try to get it done quickly. These hotspots are active again. One of those bitches will catch up to me as soon as they deal with the cops."
"Say no more," the man said before disconnecting the call.
It didn't take much longer as the space in front of her started distorting. A light smirk appeared on her face as the distortion started whirling and quickly formed into a portal. She confidently stepped forward and entered the portal.
In the next moment, the silver-haired woman stood in front of a massive man who was easily twice as tall as her. Beside him stood a man wearing a long robe that covered almost all of his body as the hood covered his face under the darkness.
"Black Cat," the man said. "My most valued thief."
"At your service, Kingpin," she said while bowing playfully. "So that's the valued wizard that you were talking about, huh? He's pretty good to be able to teleport me from Paris to New York."
"The crown," Kingpin said, not addressing her inquiry about the robed man beside him. "Show it to me."
"Now, now, what's the hurry?" She asked. "Show me my reward first. I don't know if Notre-Dame was a localized occurrence or not, but if the hotspots are active again, that crown's magical amplification is going to make you a very powerful man. I want my reward first."
"Fine," Kingpin smiled dangerously. "Bring out Black Cat's payment."
She finally noticed that there was another person in the room. A man stepped forward from behind Kingpin with a briefcase in his hand. Her eyes honed in on it as a thought crossed her mind.
'Fat ass…' Kingpin was truly a ginormous man, large enough to easily hide multiple people behind him.
The man stopped in front of Black Cat and opened the briefcase, displaying four cylindrical cases full of diamonds encased within foam protection.
"Damn…" Black Cat whistled as the glistening diamonds glinted in her eyes. Her hand involuntarily shot forward as she grabbed one of the cases to look at its contents.
"The crown now, Cat," Kingpin said with impatience shining in his eyes. "I won't be asking again."
"Ohh, so scary," she rolled her eyes and put the diamond case back into the briefcase before putting her gloved hand into her satchel. When she pulled it out, she held the Crown of Thorns in her hand. "Happy? I do have it."
"That means we can conclude the deal," Kingpin's eyes were filled with greed. "The Diamonds for the Crown."
"Naturally," she said.
The man holding the briefcase stepped forward while extending his hand toward the crown. His eyes were fixated on the artifact, preventing him from noticing the faint red glow that appeared in Black Cat's emerald green eyes.
Suddenly, he tripped, and his grip loosened enough to allow the briefcase to slip from his fingers as he fell to his knees.
"Woah," Black Cat's honed reflexes allowed her to grasp the falling briefcase before it crashed. "You okay, buddy?" She asked, not looking concerned in the slightest. "My unlucky streak is on a roll today…" She mumbled under her breath.
"What sheer incompetence," Kingpin looked infuriated as he looked at Black Cat holding both her reward and the Crown of Thorns. "The Crown, Black Cat. Now."
"I was just giving it to him," she said with a chuckle as the man got up to his feet. "I can't even use this damn thing. It's not like I have any magical powers or knowledge. Even if I keep it, it's going to be nothing more than a glorified paperweight."
Quickly composing himself, the man's hand shot forward, about to grab the Crown of Thorns from Black Cat's hand.
Just as he was about to touch the Crown, red mist exploded out of Black Cat's form and before anyone could react to the sudden occurrence, she disappeared, with both the crown and the diamonds.
"Black Cat!" Kingpin shouted wrathfully as he crushed the armrest of his chair. "You're dead. No matter where you go, I will find you and kill you!"
The woman was too far away from him to have heard his threat right now. What Kingpin didn't notice was that not only Black Cat but the wizard who was standing beside him had also disappeared without anyone realizing it.
-x-X-x-
"What the fuck?!" The woman clad in a shiny black bodysuit that revealed a deep cleavage exclaimed in a panic as she instinctively crouched and made herself a smaller target. She immediately put the Crown of Thorns inside her satchel while examining her surroundings.
"Where am I?" She frowned and stood up cautiously after realizing that no one was about to ambush her.
She stood in front of a small cabin that looked like a secluded vacation home in the woods. That was where the normalcy ended, however. Her surroundings were covered in crimson mist, making it impossible to see anything beyond. When she looked up, the sky had a crimson tint that looked unnatural and unreal. As she turned her eyes up, a massive tower came into her view. It looked like it was far away from her and seemed like it reached all the way up into the sky. It was so high that she couldn't even see the top of the tower; eventually, it simply melded into the sky.
"What is going on…" She frowned as her grip on the briefcase tightened. The realization struck her like a truck as she looked down with trepidation. "Just my fucking luck… Kingpin's going to kill me even if I give him that shitty crown now."
"Greetings, everyone."
A thunderous voice reverberated all around her as her head whipped around, and she looked at the tower once again. There, she could see the faint silhouette of a man floating high up in the air. The distance between them was, at minimum, in the hundreds of miles, yet she was able to make out his features clearly. He had black hair and emerald green eyes that matched hers perfectly, and he wore an elegant black suit. It was as if her brain was processing his location as much closer to hers, despite her eyes seeing him far away.
"What the hell..." She felt odd and closed her eyes, shaking her head to break herself out of it. But the moment she looked at him, the same thing happened.
"I know you must be confused and almost flabbergasted about your situation. Everything will be explained in due time. For now, allow me to introduce myself. I am Apex. The Wielder of Chaos. This Tower that you see behind me is the Chaos Tower. The source of all Chaos energy and Chaos magic in this universe. And you are currently in Apex City."
"Is he talking about that red energy that the witches started using? This Chaos Tower is probably related to the hotspots starting to function again…" Black Cat spoke to herself after making a connection between the crimson mist all around her and the spells that the witches started using when she was escaping Notre-Dame.
"Each and every one of you is someone who has a connection to this tower, whether it be weak or strong. You all have either the capability or the potential to use Chaos magic. This city will provide you with all the resources that you may need to become an Avatar of Chaos. To embody Chaos energy and utilize Chaos with such power that you would be able to decimate entire countries within seconds."
"I don't like this…" She frowned. "It's like someone enticing me with untold power… Is this place some kind of prison?"
"I can see that many of you have doubts about your situation here. You will understand everything in due time. For now, what you need to understand are the rules of Apex City. First off, the cabin in front of you. That cabin is your sanctuary, your sanctum. No other person can enter that cabin without your explicit permission. Now you might be thinking that there are no other people besides you here. That is where the City Square comes in."
Suddenly, the cabin disappeared from Black Cat's view, and she appeared in the middle of a massive crowd of people. She felt an unnatural compulsion to look in a certain direction instead of focusing on the people around her. That was when she saw the tower and its true scale. It was a behemoth of a structure, large enough that it was easily multiple miles on each of her sides. She roughly estimated it to be more than twenty to thirty miles in sheer radius. She then saw the man who had introduced himself as Apex much more clearly this time.
"Here, you can commune with your fellow witches and wizards who dabble in Chaos magic and harness Chaos energy. Traveling between the City Center and your cabins only requires a thought—no spells, no invocation of power, simply a thought, and you shall be transported. The Tower facilitates all your teleportation needs. That includes leaving this place. Some of you have tried and failed because any other means of teleportation are banned here. If you wish to go back to your previous location on Earth, you merely need to think about it, and you shall be sent back."
Suddenly, a large part of the crowd disappeared, returning to their original locations. Seconds later, most of them came back, while a small percentage simply stayed away.
Black Cat didn't try anything, keeping her gaze fixated on Apex, trying to get a read on the man.
"For the time being, the only people here are those from Earth-21798B. That is the designated ID of your planet. In time, we will be bringing in similar people from other Earths as well. Under those circumstances, you may or may not run into variants of yourselves. Someone who may have had the exact same life as you, or someone who may have had a completely different life from you, but may have the same face. Consider yourselves lucky to have arrived here during the first wave. Because you get to occupy the best spots."
Apex snapped his fingers, and Black Cat suddenly found herself seated inside a massive colosseum.
It was now that she finally got wind of the sheer scale of this Apex City. She had seen the Colosseum in Rome, and this place dwarfed it entirely. She couldn't quite comprehend just how massive the structure was, but estimated that it could easily hold millions of people. It was larger than any stadium that she knew of, yet her view of the arena was immaculate. Unlike everywhere else, it seemed as if it was afternoon in the stadium, confusing her quite a bit.
The attractive sensation emerged in her mind again, compelling her to look up at a floating announcer's platform where Apex stood.
"This is my Colosseum. Here, you can challenge each other—whether it be a magical or physical duel is up to the participants. You can also perform certain tasks that will be posted here. You may ask, 'Why should we do such things?' I'll tell you why. For this."
Apex raised a crimson orb of mist in his hand that had an irresistible attraction to Black Cat. She had the same glint in her eyes that she had when she was looking at the diamonds. She wanted that orb.
"This is Chaos Authority. This represents how much Chaos energy you can access from the tower and how easily you can access it. Think of it as a reservoir of Chaos energy. You all have a limited amount and, for the time being, an equal amount of Chaos energy that you can pull from the tower. Once exhausted, you must wait until it is replenished. Now, to increase that authority, you must battle each other in the Colosseum or complete certain tasks that are assigned on the public board to increase your authority level."
Apex paused, letting the audience of around two hundred thousand witches and wizards digest his words.
"Now, for this orb that's in my hand. Let us get a taste of what is to come."
He snapped his fingers, and within an instant, Black Cat found herself as one of the two targets of those hundreds of thousands of eyes.
"Fuck me…" Her eyes widened in trepidation.
"It's you!" The woman opposite her looked positively infuriated. "Where is our crown?!"
"Just great," she mumbled, recognizing the witch opposite her. It was the woman she had knocked out when she was taking the Crown of Thorns from Notre-Dame.
"Chaos works in mysterious ways, ladies. Since you already seem to have a grudge, let us conclude here and now. Will it be a physical or a magical battle?"
"Physical," Black Cat said instantly. She had no magical capabilities to speak of, after all.
"Magical," the woman opposite her responded a moment later.
"Ah, so we have a disagreement on the kind of battle. Fine, the decision shall be made based on a coin toss. The fist represents a physical battle, and the flame represents a magical battle."
With an audible clink, Apex tossed a coin that suddenly enlarged into a massive projection that was visible to all the spectators. The two contestants only saw the real coin as it soon fell down on the arena ground, right in between both of them. The enlarged projection allowed everyone else to see the result as well.
"There we have it, a magical duel. Get ready."
"Wait, I don't know any magic."
"Half the people here don't know any magic. But Chaos works on intent. As long as you want to win, you will find a way."
"That's horrible advice," she said.
"Not when it comes to magic, it's not. Now get ready!"
Black Cat knew that there was no arguing with this unknown man.
"Start!"
"Bad luck, I know that you're there. Now would be a very good time to help me out!" She spoke as quickly as she could, raising her briefcase in front of her, hoping to use it as a shield.
The ensuing explosion made her flinch, but when the pain didn't come, she was left confused.
When she looked at her opponent, the woman's face was blackened with smoke rising from her hair and clothes.
"I told you, didn't I? Intent works."
"What happened?"
"You manipulated Causality. Chaos magic is best at such feats," Apex spoke in a much softer voice that made her feel as if he were standing beside her. "The minuscule possibility of her spell blowing up in her face was made not so minuscule."
"I don't get it…"
"You will, eventually."
A crimson orb shot toward Black Cat as she was thrown back from the impact. In the next moment, she disappeared.
"Now then, since the basics have been taken care of, you all are free to move around. Any questions you may have shall be answered by the books within the libraries within your cabins. Oh, and also. You have a month before we start bringing in outsiders. Get ready and get stronger before that time comes."
-x-X-x-
Alex and Wanda were sitting on the balcony of their tower, overlooking the small part of Apex City that was now occupied.
Multiple duels were already going on in the Colosseum as the more ambitious witches and wizards had already started to vie for supremacy.
"What do you think about putting up a leaderboard in the Colosseum?" Alex asked Wanda, who was curled up on his lap while resting her head on his chest. "It would encourage more people to fight in there, allowing us to gather even more Faith from the spectators."
"Do as you will, Alex. I already helped you come up with the framework. You can work out the details as my so-called Herald or Wielder or whatever of Chaos," she said while shifting her head to rest it on Alex's shoulder. "Not only that, I even helped you incorporate these rules of yours into the tower's mechanisms. I've done enough work to take some well-deserved rest."
"Fine," Alex smiled and gave a loving look at Wanda while gently caressing her arm and her hair. Despite all her complaints and reluctance, she had gone all out in bringing their vision for Apex City to fruition. It took them less than a whole day to take care of all the complex modifications and enchantments that had to be made to the Tower. The only reason it could be done so quickly was that Wanda had truly pushed herself.
Letting his tired witch rest, Alex focused on one of his persons of interest— Black Cat. He was especially interested in her ability to unconsciously affect causality. Specifically, bringing others bad luck and turning it into a usable ability with tangible effects.
Right now, the woman was going through the books in the library to try and figure out the deal with Apex City and how to survive here without having to go back to her reality.
"Did she steal something from someone? That's probably why she doesn't want to leave this place. I guess I could take a more hands-on approach with her. Causality manipulation would be very useful for my Felicia if I could figure out the template of the ability and directly awaken it for her."
With a thought from Alex, the woman he was focusing on appeared in front of him.
"Huh?!" She almost stumbled, but quickly repositioned herself away from Alex. "Why am I here?" Her eyes involuntarily shifted to Wanda, who was curled up in Alex's arms with a peaceful expression.
"Hello, Felicia," Alex said. "This is Wanda, my wife."
"You're married…" The silver-haired woman had gone through too many surprises in one day and seemed numbed to everything now.
"I teleported you here for a reason," he said as Felicia's gaze involuntarily went to the side.
"Woah…" She exclaimed involuntarily. "Is that..."
"Apex City. My city," Alex said. "Now look at me and focus."
"Y-yes," Felicia quickly composed herself.
"I see that you have an innate talent for causality and probability manipulation. It is a rare ability, and I plan to invest in you."
"What do I have to give up?" She asked immediately. "There's no such thing as a free lunch. I'm sure that you are getting something from doing all this stuff with Apex City as well."
"You are correct in assuming that, Felicia," Alex said with a smile. "Everyone who uses Chaos magic provides a unique feedback frequency that the Tower collects. It empowers the Source of Chaos that it channels. That is why I created Apex City. To consolidate this feedback and spread the use of Chaos magic throughout the universe."
"Honestly, that's too far beyond what I can even imagine. I would like to know what you mean by investing in me and what I would have to give up."
"I will be making you the first Avatar of Chaos, one of my direct subordinates and a very important person in Apex City," Alex said. "The only thing I need from you is loyalty and permission to examine your talent related to probability and causality."
"Loyalty for what, exactly? What even am I supposed to do as the Avatar of Chaos?"
"It's a pyramid scheme, Felicia," Alex said with a dryness in his eyes. "You have a direct connection to the tower. It gives you Chaos energy, and you give it your Faith as feedback. As an Avatar of Chaos, you get to do the same thing exactly with a special spell. The more people you are connected to, the more feedback you receive, and hence the stronger you are. The caveat here is that a percentage of the feedback you get will be taken by the Tower since it is the main source of everything. Do you get it?"
"Fuck…" Black Cat looked confused and a little weirded out. "So even extradimensional entities with godly powers aren't completely immune to MLM schemes. You learn something new every day."
"So? You in?" Alex asked her with a cough. "You get more power and more security against whatever might be threatening you. Of course, you have the option to refuse. You will still have your cabin and all the things that you already have."
"Question. Why can't you just directly indoctrinate more people into your scheme?" She asked.
"I don't have the time or the patience to do it manually for many people. The ones who were transported here were those who already had some kind of connection with Chaos magic on your planet. That is why I reactivated the hotspots. To spread Chaos energy and detect any and all potential users of Chaos magic."
"Where exactly are we?" She asked. "Is this another planet?"
"Since you've already decided to accept my offer, I don't mind telling you the truth. We are currently in the core of your planet," Alex said. "Anyone else asks, you are to tell them that this is a separate dimension, but the truth is that we are in the center of your Earth. That is the main reason that the people from your Earth were transported here as opposed to any of the others."
"Huh, I appreciate the honesty, I guess. So, how does this go? Do you blast me with another orb or something?"
"Nothing that complex, Felicia," Alex smiled as he raised his hand. A black material rose up from his palm and formed into a circlet. "Just wear this bracelet. Your authority has been increased to the level of an Avatar. As long as you invoke Chaos magic and try to give someone magic, this bracelet will activate the embedded spell. You can give the power to use magic to any normal person from now on."
"Just like that?" She asked, grabbing the bracelet hesitantly. "No pain? No…nothing?"
"The scene from the arena was for the spectators. It hypes things up."
"And this has no limits? Can I give this power to anyone?"
"Not only can you give it to whoever you want, you can take it back whenever you want as well," Alex said. "Of course, I would rather that you not give it to mass murderers. Those guys are bad for a business that is dependent on numbers."
"I'm going to start my own group of thieves…" Felicia said as she slipped the bracelet on her wrist. It automatically tightened around her skin and became as thin as paper, becoming almost unnoticeable.
"Whatever you want to do with it is up to you," Alex said. "Of course, there will be some supervision. You have to start pulling your weight if you want to keep this power. Spread your influence and bring more people under you. I want that feedback increased as soon as possible."
"I get it," she nodded. "I've swindled people for my fair share of pyramid schemes. I know how things go. One question, though, does quality matter?"
"Not in the way you would think," Alex said. "This feedback is dependent on emotions. If someone has very vibrant emotions, they will give more feedback. A sociopath will give almost no feedback. We need people with passion and drive. Those who feel exhilaration when they use magic. They are the people you should target."
"Got it," she said. "If you don't mind me asking, why are you doing all this?"
"Doing what?"
"This," she said. "Trying to empower this…Tower. Why?"
Alex smiled at her words as he lightly caressed Wanda's hair. "Let's leave that a mystery for the time being, shall we? If you are curious about my boss, then you don't need to be concerned. I don't have one… Unless you count her. Whatever, that doesn't matter. I am the sole proprietor of this tower, and everything goes through me."
"I understand," Felicia nodded.
"Also, before you leave. If you ever need to contact me, just put two fingers on your bracelet. I can talk to you through telepathy."
"I see… Thank you," Felicia said after some thought before stepping back. She thought of returning to her cabin and immediately disappeared.
"Causality manipulation, huh… Unfortunately, it requires some kind of energy to power it. Otherwise, this would be such a broken ability."