The strongest beings that can normally appear within a multiverse are multiversal-level.
Take the Five Abstract Entities, for example. Within a single multiverse, they are invincible. Their power usually represents the very ceiling of that universe.
If you want to reach the Omniverse-level—say, to rise from multiversal-level to omniversal-level—growing into it on your own is nearly impossible. You have to rely on "opportunity." Without some extraordinary stroke of fortune to obtain a treasure, the Living Tribunal is a hurdle you can never cross.
Don't be misled by the times the Living Tribunal has been killed in such embarrassing ways. That only happened because its opponents gained a rare opportunity. Otherwise, relying solely on their own strength, hardly any beings could kill the Living Tribunal outright.
Even Thanos went up against it wearing the Infinity Gauntlet—yet the Living Tribunal subdued him with a single word.
Alright, I've mentioned this before, and I'm digressing.
The point is: since the peak of an infinite multiverse is the Five Abstract Entities, it is always they who hold back collapse—unless they flee.
One Devourer of Worlds did exactly that. His universe was about to be destroyed, but he escaped instead.
But overall, when a universe faces destruction, the Five Abstract Entities are the first to sense it. Ordinary people? What are they worrying for? It won't even be their turn.
"Oh, I see..."
Cindy, Mayday, and Peni scratched their heads after hearing this. For a moment, they'd almost thought they were the culprits. That would've been way too much guilt.
Galacta, on the other hand, laughed gloatingly.
"Serves him right for devouring so many life-bearing planets. Now he's in trouble—brought it all on himself."
Lorien knew well what Devourer Girl thought of Galactus.
Why had Galacta left him? Because she couldn't stand his cruelty and indulgence. For Galactus, hunger could sway his very thoughts and emotions. Whenever hunger struck, he would devour any life-bearing planet he encountered. And he didn't think that was efficient enough—so he recruited the Silver Surfer and others to help him find more targets.
Galacta couldn't bear it. So she came to Earth alone, both to live and to study how to solve the problem of hunger.
That was the reason behind it all.
Lorien looked at her and asked,
"How's your research going lately, Galacta?"
"Uh... it's okay, I guess." Being asked about her progress made Galacta a little embarrassed. "But I can't get past the final step. I just can't figure out which part of me actually needs the life energy."
Lorien nodded and reassured her.
"Don't worry. There's still plenty of time. You'll figure it out."
"Mhm!" Galacta nodded firmly.
At that moment, the Ballerina Twins reported from the side.
"Master, the first wave of the cosmic war has ended.
The Transformers civilization is recovering resources from the battlefield debris, and more extensive, powerful, and specialized construction is underway.
The Elders thank the Creator for his protection, which spared the Transformers further losses.
After watching Miss Galacta's battlefield broadcast, the Collector has become even more diligent in helping the Transformers civilization advance, along with himself.
Also, Godzilla is searching for your location."
At the last report, Lorien suddenly remembered—they had agreed to give Godzilla proper praise once the war was over.
He turned to Wanda.
"Guide the little guy here."
Wanda nodded. With a flick of her fingers, a crimson wave of magic flared briefly before sinking into space.
The next instant, everyone saw Godzilla turn in the distance, then surge toward them. His body radiated a blazing purple glow, flying like a Super Saiyan.
Before long, he landed before them.
"Roar~~~"
The moment he spotted Lorien, Godzilla's joy was so intense his flames rippled and trembled—just like a dog or cat wagging its tail at its owner. Well, his tail really was wagging.
Lorien looked over his new form.
1,500 meters tall.
Armor-like skin of purple-black.
A massive purple pendant gleaming on his chest.
A fierce, powerful body and face.
His back fins pulsing with flowing purple light.
And his entire form blazing like a Super Saiyan.
All in all, he looked even more impressive.
Cindy, Mayday, and Peni all gasped at once at the sight of the giant.
"So freaking awesome...!"
That huge, that cool, that fierce. It looked super badass, right? You could tell how powerful it was just by looking!
"Not bad, little guy." Lorien nodded approvingly. "You fought well. We've been watching the whole time—you did great. Developing that new ability was timely. You figured it out yourself, didn't you?"
Hearing Lorien's words, Godzilla nodded eagerly.
"Roar~!"
That meant he had come up with it on his own. He even explained the reasoning: instead of channeling his energy only through his mouth, he could also release it through his skin. The high-energy reactions formed shockwaves. They weren't as destructive as his atomic breath, but the range was enormous—insanely strong AoE.
"An excellent ability."
Lorien praised him again with satisfaction.
Truth be told, the move was very similar to Burning Godzilla's ability, but that one only gained it after a special evolution. This little guy had managed to learn it directly. That was pure talent.
Hearing Lorien's praise,
"Roar~!"
Godzilla wagged his tail happily, nodding with excitement.
"Big guy, look at me, look at me!"
Hela, already impatient, called out from the side. Godzilla turned to her.
Hela waved and said,
"Long time no see, big guy. Do you remember me?"
"Roar~?"
Godzilla gave her a contemptuous look.
Who do you think you're doubting? Who would have such a short memory? With my master, a single day apart feels like three autumns. With you... well, close enough. Do you really think I've got a goldfish's memory?
Seeing that scornful look, Hela stiffened slightly and pouted.
"Our bond's faded. Back on Earth, I was always looking for you to play with. Now it's... gone..."
"Roar~"
Godzilla let out a low, helpless roar, meaning: I remember, I remember.
Hela instantly brightened up again.
"Good, good. You're awesome, big guy. We saw you fight—it was really cool."
"Roar~"
Godzilla responded.
Then Wanda and Gwen greeted him as well, followed by Galacta. When Godzilla heard her, he gave an extra loud roar, clearly pleased. After all, she had just been a huge help.
Without Galacta, not only would the Transformers civilization have suffered 20% more casualties, but Godzilla himself would have been worn out. Atomic breath doesn't tire you? Normally, he could only unleash it a handful of times before exhaustion. But in this war, he had used it dozens of times—plus all those Purple Lotus shockwaves.
Next, after the familiar faces finished greeting him, Gwen introduced Cindy, Mayday, and Peni. They were also important members of the Spider-Alliance, so it was only a matter of time before they met.
"Hello~"
"Roar~"
After the greetings and introductions, Lorien glanced at the time. It was already 1 AM.
Of course, staying up all night wasn't impossible. Godzilla had finally gotten Lorien's praise and a proper introduction to everyone. Lorien didn't want to cut things short too quickly.
So...
With their backs against the starry sky and their feet resting on it, they all sat on the platform, talking and laughing.
Lorien, Wanda, Gwen, Hela, Galacta, Cindy, Mayday, Peni, Godzilla, Aria, and Bella.
Quite the crowd.
Everyone chimed in, one after another, or broke off into small groups to chat.
Time flew by.
...
Meanwhile, on Earth, in a nature reserve on the outskirts of New York.
Inside a cabin disguised as a wooden house, Tony lay asleep with Pepper nestled in his arms.
Pepper's belly had grown larger and larger with time. What was once barely noticeable was now impossible to hide beneath her clothes. To keep her company through the long, restless nights, Tony had adjusted his own schedule, going to bed earlier and waking earlier. For some time now, he had been asleep before 11 PM.
But now it was 1 AM.
Tony's nanotech wristband sent a faint neural current through his body. It didn't hurt, but it was enough to stir him from sleep.
A few moments later, Tony opened his groggy eyes. Realizing it was the wristband's alert, he lifted a hand and waved it through the air. A light screen appeared instantly.
Before he could even ask what was happening, Friday had already flagged the critical information.
Beyond Earth. At the edge of the Solar System. Out past Mars.
A massive surge of high-energy alerts had been detected.
How massive?
Tony's alert display had so many warnings that it didn't even list a number—just [999+].
And every single one of them was marked as an extremely dangerous high-energy signal.
At first, Tony thought he was imagining things.
"What?"
He rubbed his eyes and looked again carefully.
[999+]
To make it even clearer, a deep red exclamation mark flashed beside the notification bar.
"What!?"
This time, Tony was sure. He wasn't seeing things.
Could it be a glitch? How else could there be so many high-energy readings?
If signals like these were actually on Earth, the entire surface would already have been plowed over countless times. Mount Everest would be ripped out and shoved straight into the Mariana Trench.
"What the hell is going on?" Tony muttered. "Is the data corrupted? Did someone set the minimum detection threshold wrong?"
The system's minimum detection level was nuclear-grade. If it had been misconfigured, even grenades would set it off. That was the only way such a flood of signals could make sense.
But Friday's next words snapped Tony fully awake.
"No, sir. These high-energy reactions are all real, and they're happening right at the edge of our Solar System."
"!!"
Tony immediately put the pieces together.
"Oh no—it's the Transformers and the Annihilation Wave! Call Lorien!"