(AN: The chappie for the day! Made it in time. Enjoy ^_^)
The ride to Stark Tower was quiet.
Too quiet.
They moved through secured corridors and emergency-lit stairwells until they reached one of the upper floors—partially damaged, but intact enough to hold a long table and a few chairs.
Tony had personally confirmed it: no cameras, no satellites, no listening devices.
Not even FRIDAY nor Jarvis could see in unless he allowed it, which he did.
Elias lagged a step behind the others.
Not because he was tired—but because his attention was elsewhere.
Floating windows followed his gaze, translucent and merciless.
He read them again.
And again.
Each line confirmed the same uncomfortable truth.
He wasn't just strong.
He was dangerous.
[Congratulations for reaching the proficient level of being a Villain!
You have been rewarded a new ability!
Chronokinesis Level 1 - 3!
•Time deceleration - slows down time except the caster.
•Time acceleration (locked) - hastens time for any target. Requisite: Level 4 Proficiency
•Time Stop (locked) - stop or freezes time except the caster. Requisite:Level 7 Proficiency
•Time Reversal(locked) - riverse the flow of time and reverting what has already happened. Requisite: Level 9 Proficiency
•Time Travel (locked) - can travel to any timeline, past, future or parallel. Requisite: Master Villain designation.]
[Notification Warning ⚠️⚠️ ⚠️
The generals have failed the first Order:
Order: Retrieve the Tesseract after the invasion and deliver it to Arthas Menethil.
Reward: Knowledge regarding the Tesseract's true origin.
Failure: A swarm of Insectoids will be dispatched to retrieve it—regardless of cost.
You have been granted temporary use of the Arthas Menethil template temporarily to enact punishment on your Generals who failed your first order.
Choose one of the following punishments:
1. Fight in the left 4 dead universe for 7 days
2. Fight in the aliens universe for 7 days
3. Survive the hunt of the Yautja in the Predator universe for 7 days
4. Fight and survive the battle of klendathu in the starship troopers universe for 7 days
Auto-pick choice number 3]
Shit.
Elias could feel a headache coming. It just kept coming! Can't the system give me a break or what?
I have to talk to them as Elias first, then I'll decide how to handle them.
For now, choose option 1.
Elias viewed his status.
[Villain System
Status
Name: Elias Mercer
Designation: Villain — Proficient (New)
Level: 3
Experience: 9 / 12
Left Hand:
•FRIDAY/Kristen
Generals:
•Steven 'Grant' Rogers - Captain America
•Anthony Edward Stark - Ironman
•Robert Bruce Banner - Hulk
•Natalia Alianovna Romanova - Black Widow
•Clinton Francis Barton - Hawkeye (New)
Summons(Servants):
• Xenomorph — Evolved (Hulk Blood)
• Yautja Hunters ×2
•T-X(F.R.I.D.A.Y)
Skills:
• Appraisal — MAXED
• Imperius — MAXED
• Crucio — MAXED
• Avada Kedavra — MAXED
• Obliviate — MAXED
•Chronokinesis - Level 3
° Time deceleration
Abilities:
• Tactical Mini-Map (Passive)
• Telekinesis — MAXED
– Limit: 10M tons
•Jedi Lightsaber Combat Level 4
°Way of the Sarlacc: Shii-cho
°Way of the Duelist: Makashi
°Way of the Mynock: Soresu
°Way of the Hawk-bat: Ataru
•Martial Arts Level 3
°Karate
°Jiu-Jitsu
°Boxing
•Fire abilities n' Pyrokinesis (Revision)
°Fire Control
°Fire Summon
°Fire Immunity
•Madness Immunity (New)
(AN: Just a thought, Telekinesis and Pyrokinesis should probably go to skills right?)
Inventory:
Slots: 30
Occupied: 5 / 30
• Slot 1: Facehugger Eggs ×2
• Slot 2: Lightsaber — Corrupted Variant (Crimson)
• Slot 3: Epirus Bow
• Slot 4: Frostmourne
•Slot 5: Necronomicon Ex-mortis (New)
...]
A proficient villain.
Chronokinesis alone sent a chill down his spine.
Slowing time—only him moving while the world crawled.
And the rest?
Locked. Waiting. Patient.
Like a predator sitting just beyond the edge of sight.
By the time Elias dismissed the last window, they had gathered around the table.
Steve stood instead of sitting.
Natasha leaned against the edge.
Bruce hovered close to a chair but didn't take it.
Tony sat, arms crossed.
Clint stayed near the wall, eyes sharp.
Elias finally pulled a chair back and sat.
No one spoke.
So Elias did.
"I'll start with the part that makes everything else make sense," he said quietly.
"The multiverse."
That got their attention.
"There isn't just one universe," Elias continued.
"Every choice—every decision—branches reality. You turn left instead of right, a new world exists where you turned right. You say yes instead of no, hesitate instead of act. Infinite variations."
Tony frowned.
"You're saying there are… copies of us."
"Versions," Elias corrected.
"Not copies. Every one of them real. Every one convinced they're the original."
Silence fell heavy.
Steve spoke first.
"So somewhere out there… there's a version of me that never woke up."
"Yes," Elias said.
"And one that never froze. One that died in the war. One that lost. One that won too much. Or even one who married Peggy Carter."
Natasha's expression hardened, and so did Steve. Knowing that a version of him made it to the dance.
"And this world?" Natasha asked.
"One branch," Elias said.
"One thread among infinite."
Bruce rubbed his temples.
"That's… a lot to take in."
"That's just the beginning," Elias replied.
They looked at him again.
"If there are infinite universes," he said, "then the multiverse exists. But even that isn't the highest layer."
Clint squinted.
"You're telling me it gets worse."
Elias nodded.
"Different multiverses exist as well. Each with their own rules. Their own physics. Their own gods. That collection… that's called the Omniverse."
Tony let out a breath.
"Okay. I officially hate this conversation."
Elias didn't smile.
"Arthas Menethil," he said, "comes from another universe… in another multiverse."
That name settled into the room like frost.
"He was born in a world called Azeroth," Elias continued.
"A medieval world of magic, gods, demons, dragons, and endless war. Arthas was a prince. A paladin of the Silver Hand. Chosen by the Light itself."
Steve's jaw tightened.
"A good man."
"He was," Elias agreed.
"One of the best."
Elias leaned back slightly, eyes distant now.
"When a plague began turning his people into undead, Arthas did everything he could to save them. He hunted the source. Chased it across continents. And when he realized he wasn't strong enough… he made a choice."
Natasha's voice was quiet.
"He chose power."
"Yes."
Elias' hand twitched unconsciously.
"Frostmourne," he said. "A cursed runeblade. It promised strength enough to stop the plague. Enough to save his people. What it didn't say… was that it would devour his soul."
"Arthas took the blade," Elias went on.
"And with every victory, he lost more of himself. He burned cities. Slaughtered allies. Killed his own father. All while believing it was necessary."
Bruce whispered, "The road to hell…"
"…is paved with good intentions," Elias finished.
"He became the Lich King," Elias said.
"Master of the Scourge. Ruler of death. Not because he wanted to rule—but because there was no one left to stop him."
Clint shifted uncomfortably.
"And that is who we're generals for."
"Yes."
Steve exhaled slowly. "He wasn't evil, not from the start. He was simply lost by corrupted power."
Elias met his gaze.
"He became a villain," he said.
"But he never stopped believing he was protecting his world."
The room was silent again.
Finally, Tony spoke.
"And you?"
Elias hesitated.
"I didn't meet Arthas during those times of the plague or what he did to his people," he said.
"I met him when his war was already lost. When he had nothing left but enemies and regrets."
Natasha studied him carefully.
"And he called you… a dear friend."
Elias gave a faint, humorless smile.
"I didn't try to save his world," he said.
"I stood with him when no one else would."
No one interrupted.
"Now," Elias said quietly, "his system is testing me. And all of you."
He glanced around the table.
"And whether we like it or not… we're already involved."
No one argued.
No one laughed.
The weight of the omniverse pressed down on them all.
There was silence, but even that didn't last long.
Steve was the one who finally broke the silence.
He rested both hands on the back of a chair, eyes steady on Elias.
Not accusing.
Not hostile.
Just… honest.
"You explained who Arthas is," Steve said.
"And where he comes from. But you didn't say how you got there."
The room shifted subtly.
Everyone leaned in without realizing it.
Elias looked at them for a long moment before asking something completely unexpected.
"Have any of you watched a movie called Evil Dead?"
That earned a reaction.
Tony blinked.
"The horror one? Cabin in the woods, chainsaw hand, really aggressive trees?"
Bruce grimaced. "Unfortunately, yes."
Natasha crossed her arms and looked at Steve. "I was wondering when you'd bring that up."
Clint tilted his head.
"Let me guess. That explains how you got to Azeroth, Arthas' world?"
Elias nodded slowly. "Predators. Xenomorphs. Zombies. Even Arthas Menethil."
He let the words sink in.
"They're all fiction," Elias said.
"Movies. Games. Stories. Things that were never supposed to be real."
Tony leaned forward, fingers steepled. His voice lost its humor.
"Unless someone—or something—is turning imagination into reality."
No one interrupted him.
"If that's true," Tony continued, "then this isn't random. It's a framework. A system. Someone's testing variables. Seeing what happens when fantasy collides with reality."
He looked around the table.
"Objective? No clue. But if it started once, it won't stop. And we're already part of it."
Steve's jaw tightened.
"Which means more are coming."
"Yes," Tony said quietly.
"And we need to be ready."
All eyes returned to Elias.
He exhaled.
"This started… stupidly normal," Elias said. "I was at home. Dinner on the table. TV on. Just another night."
He paused, as if replaying it.
"And then the book appeared."
Natasha stiffened. "Appeared."
"On my table," Elias confirmed. "Right in front of me. No flash. No portal. Just—there."
He shook his head faintly.
"I laughed. Thought it was a joke. A prop. Some idiot's idea of a prank."
His gaze lowered.
"Then I opened it."
Slowly, deliberately, Elias reached into his inventory.
The air changed.
A thick, ancient-looking book manifested in his hands, bound in cracked, leathery skin.
Its cover twitched—just slightly—like something alive beneath it.
Everyone froze. They all felt it.
"That," Bruce whispered, "is not okay."
"The Necronomicon Ex-Mortis," Elias said calmly.
"The Book of the Dead."
He placed it on the table.
It did not like that.
The pages rustled despite no wind.
A faint, wet sound echoed as if the book was breathing.
"I didn't know what it was at first," Elias said.
"I skimmed it. Mocked it. Read parts out loud because it sounded ridiculous."
Clint swallowed. "You read it."
"Yes."
Elias' voice was steady, but his eyes darkened.
"I didn't know I could read Sumerian," he said.
"Didn't even realize I was translating it perfectly. I thought I was just trying to make fun of it."
He tapped the book lightly.
"I didn't even realize I have activated a spell."
The room felt colder.
"One moment I was sitting at my table," Elias continued.
"The next… I was somewhere else. Snow. Ash. Ruins. A sky that felt heavier than ours."
Steve listened without blinking.
"That was Azeroth," Elias said. "I didn't arrive as a hero. Or a chosen one. I arrived lost."
He hesitated.
"And I met Arthas."
Silence pressed in.
"He was alone," Elias said.
"Feared. Hated. Carrying the weight of a world that blamed him for everything it survived."
Tony frowned.
"And you didn't try to stop him."
"No," Elias said simply.
"I listened."
That hit harder than any spell.
"I helped where I could," Elias went on.
"Not with armies or magic—but by staying. By acknowledging him as a person, not a monster."
Steve's expression softened just slightly.
"He noticed," Elias said. "And acknowledged me in return."
A faint, bitter smile touched his lips.
"That's when the system appeared," Elias said.
"Named me his friend. And sent me back."
He looked up at them all.
"I didn't conquer a world," Elias said. "I survived one. And came back changed."
No one spoke for several seconds.
Then Steve asked quietly, "If you hadn't opened that book… would any of this have happened?"
Elias didn't answer right away.
Finally, he said, "I don't think the book found me by accident."
The Necronomicon twitched.
"See-" Elias froze as something familiar to the 4 besides Clint happened.
Time froze.
Elias' lips were parted mid-sentence.
The faint hum of Stark Tower—electronics, distant wind through shattered glass, the city far below—cut out as if someone had slammed reality's mute button.
Tony was locked in place, one hand half-raised, arc reactor dim but steady.
Natasha was motionless, eyes sharp even in stillness.
Bruce didn't blink.
Steve stood like a statue carved from resolve.
Four of them felt it instantly.
Clint did not.
"Okay," Clint said, a nervous laugh creeping in as he waved a hand in front of Elias' frozen face.
"Very funny, guys. Time stop prank. Ha-ha. You can knock it off now."
No response.
He swallowed. "Elias?"
The room felt wrong.
Not quiet—dead.
Steve moved.
Slowly.
Deliberately.
He placed a steady hand on Clint's shoulder.
"Easy," Steve said calmly.
"This isn't Elias messing around."
Clint tensed.
"Then what is it?"
Steve's eyes never left Elias.
"If I had to guess… Arthas is about to speak. Probably through the Group Chat."
End of Chapter