The moment the cork popped, Ant-Man shot upright—
—or tried to. His body gave out halfway, and he flopped uselessly against the bottom of the glass bottle.
The little boy quickly poured him out into his palm, blowing gently as if afraid the shrunken hero might catch a cold.
Unfortunately for Ant-Man, that "gentle" breath smelled like a garlic bomb. He jerked awake immediately, eyes wide.
"Ugh—what the hell…"
He slapped the trigger on his gauntlet, and in an instant, his body expanded back to normal size. The helmet's faceplate hissed open, and he fell to one knee.
"I need food," he muttered weakly. "You get me that, I'll… make your wish come true."
The little boy blinked. "You're… the devil?"
"Sure," Ant-Man said dryly. "Let's go with that."
"What do you eat, Mister Devil?"
"Anything. Bread, milk—whatever."
The boy sprinted off and returned with a hunk of bread and a bottle of milk.
Ant-Man devoured it like a man rescued from a desert, crumbs flying. With every bite, the fog in his brain cleared a little.
"Alright, kids," he said between gulps. "What's your wish?"
The little girl answered innocently, "We want Superman to come play with us."
Ant-Man blinked. "Superman? You know Ant-Man's cooler, right?"
They shook their heads. "We want Superman! You're a devil, right? He'll be scared of you!"
Ant-Man groaned. "Right, fine. I'll go grab him for you."
He had no intention of staying. Time was running out—and if his hunch was right, something was rotten at S.H.I.E.L.D.
As soon as he shrank again, he summoned his ant squad through the communicator and rode off toward the horizon.
He didn't dare contact the Avengers or Fury. Not now.
If the Abomination really had taken control of S.H.I.E.L.D., he needed to confirm it firsthand.
Meanwhile, back at the Axville School, Ryuuto had already sketched out a rough plan.
It was simple, but risky—
Slip into the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier. Locate Abomination. Cut him down before anyone realized they were there.
Infiltration meant stealth.
Invisibility, phase-walking—so naturally, he picked the golden duo: Susan and Katie Dee.
But Tony wasn't convinced.
"The Helicarrier's radar is next-gen," he warned. "Even if you're invisible, it'll detect any movement that isn't instantly teleported. You so much as sneeze in midair, it'll lock on."
Ryuuto sighed. "So much for 'simple.'"
After a round of adjustments, they revised the plan.
Tony would fly in first, draw attention, and distract S.H.I.E.L.D.'s scanners.
While the chaos brewed, Ryuuto and the others would slip in under cover, using the school's stealth craft.
Even Professor Charles decided to join this time—no longer content to sit back and watch.
By the time the meeting adjourned, the final operation was set for noon tomorrow.
Elsewhere, in the dim silence of St. DePaul's Church, New York—
Magneto stood before the statue of Christ, his expression unreadable.
Mystique lounged casually on a pew, legs crossed, watching him with lazy disinterest.
The church doors creaked open. Heavy footsteps echoed.
Abomination entered, his face twisted into a grin—and a strange, glowing scepter in his clawed hand.
"I almost thought the Hulk finished you off," Magneto remarked coolly. "And now you're walking in here with that… curious toy. Where'd you steal it?"
"Borrowed it," Abomination sneered. "An ant-sized thief did me a favor."
He raised the scepter, letting its glow play across the old stone walls.
"Anyway, let's skip the small talk. I came to invite you—to the Dark Avengers. Our goals align, Magneto. Eliminate the X-Men, then take the whole damn planet."
"I've already enslaved S.H.I.E.L.D.," he continued. "Even Captain America dances to my tune. All that's left is wiping out Ryuuto and his merry little mutants."
Magneto laughed, low and mocking.
"Join you? I founded the Brotherhood of Mutants with my own hands, monster. I don't take orders from failures."
"Then cooperate," Abomination hissed. "At least until we crush the X-Men."
"You talk about cooperation," Magneto said coldly, "but you brought no sincerity."
CRASH—!
The stained-glass window exploded inward as Deadpool tumbled through, guns blazing.
Bullets froze mid-air, halted five centimeters from Magneto's chest.
With a casual flick of his wrist, Magneto reversed their paths.
Four bullets tore through Deadpool's chest.
The mercenary gasped—then laughed. "Oh yeah… that's the good stuff! Dying never gets old!"
He pressed both smoking barrels to his face and inhaled deeply.
"Ahh… that smell. Better than cocaine!"
Mystique pinched the bridge of her nose. "He's insufferable."
Even Magneto's patience wavered. Abomination looked equally disgusted, though he forced a smile.
"Deadpool's… unique way of saying hello," he muttered.
"Unique, sure," Magneto said, voice flat. "Charles tried to recruit you once, didn't he? You turned him down."
"Yup!" Deadpool grinned. "But the Dark Avengers sounded fun. Plus, I heard that guy—Ryuuto—is crazy strong. I wanna fight him one-on-one!"
Magneto exhaled. "You're all lunatics."