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Hawk's power came from his own Cosmo.
Mephisto's power came from the Hell Dimension.
Dormammu's power naturally came from the Dark Dimension.
Theoretically speaking, an angel's power should also come from Heaven's dimension.
But that wasn't the case at all.
An angel's power came from their wings.
The more wings they had, the stronger their power.
And an angel's wings weren't just the source of their energy—they were also the medium through which angels communicated with Heaven's dimension.
An angel who lost their wings lost their power. And an angel without power became no different from an ordinary human.
They could get sick. They could even age faster than regular people.
The bird-man with freshly torn-off wings lying before him—Hawk didn't recognize him.
But...
The moment he glimpsed the ravaged, crater-like wounds on the bird-man's back, a familiar face from St. Paul's Church suddenly surfaced in his memory.
Father John.
A priest who had taken over St. Paul's Church after Father Moses—the man who'd raised him and his sister—passed away.
By that time, Hawk and his sister had already left the church for their designated foster family.
But he still visited the church often.
Because it was Father John who'd given him the chance to earn money singing in the choir.
Father John always praised his faith, and Hawk would respond with declarations of unwavering devotion to God before accepting his well-earned ten dollars from the priest's hands with an expression of gratitude toward the Almighty.
Hawk had actually liked Father John quite a bit.
He'd even visited St. Paul's Church just two months ago on a random Sunday, specifically to keep the now white-haired Father John company during prayer.
But that wasn't the point.
The point was—
As Hawk's eyes narrowed, the handsome features of the bird-man pinned beneath his foot began to overlap with the memory of Father John in his mind.
Hss!
When the bird-man's face transformed into Father John's familiar visage before his eyes, Hawk drew in a sharp breath.
This birdman was the future Father John of St. Paul's Church.
Hawk was stunned.
And suddenly, everything made sense.
The reason he and his sister Anya had ended up at St. Paul's Church's doorstep in the first place—it was all because of Yahweh trying to kill him by piercing through the timeline.
"I knew it."
"No wonder I was the only orphan in a choir full of neighborhood kids from faithful families."
"And here I was, trusting you all that time."
"Turns out you were just trying to brainwash me through all that."
Hawk's mind raced as he looked down at the bird-man who'd passed out from the agony of his torn back. Without hesitation, he spat directly on him.
The next second.
He grabbed the bird-man by the collar, followed his will, and appeared in some unknown alley. He lifted the lid of a dumpster, tossed the bird-man inside like garbage, then left without a second glance.
The moment his figure vanished from that place—
The scene froze like a paused film frame.
Sitting cross-legged upon the River of Time, Hawk opened his eyes. Before him, the only remaining breach in his timeline was now visibly sealing itself at a speed he could perceive with the naked eye.
He'd killed Yahweh. Yahweh had tried to reach through time to convert him. And John—whose true name remained unknown—had been the vessel for that attempt.
Hawk had appeared and ripped Father John's wings clean off, trapping him permanently in that past timeline.
But the angel hadn't forgotten his mission. After Father Moses died, he came to St. Paul's Church and attempted to train Hawk's faith in God.
Hawk, motivated purely by the paycheck, had played along with the faith.
Father John believed Hawk had genuinely converted.
But Hawk had never believed. His sister died, the System went online, he awakened his Cosmo, and he killed Yahweh...
And thus.
The timeline closed into a perfect loop once more.
WHOOOM!
The moment Hawk completed this time loop triggered by Yahweh, the final temporal breach sealed itself completely.
The next instant.
BOOM!
The gates of the Seventh Sense shattered on cue, dissolving into endless golden light that merged with the radiance already expanding outward toward the edges of the universe.
Sitting cross-legged in the hidden chamber of Kamar-Taj's library, Hawk's existence began flickering through past, present, and future simultaneously—all manifesting upon his form at once.
After a while.
Hawk opened his eyes.
The Eye of Agamotto floating before his brow—radiating the light of time—slowly closed, sealing the Time Stone back within its housing.
Almost as if...
It was terrified he might use it for even one more second.
Hawk watched the Eye of Agamotto automatically close and settle back onto the stone pedestal. He smiled, rose from the platform, and turned to face the mural of the Vishanti—the three-in-one divine beings—on the wall behind him. The corner of his mouth quirked upward.
"Why so stingy?"
"I don't have a collecting habit."
"As long as you lend me the Time Stone when I need it, I have zero intention of keeping it for myself."
He already possessed the Reality Stone and the Mind Stone.
The Reality Stone helped him project one hundred percent of his true power, and in the future, it would help him manifest his Phoenix Universe once he comprehended the Eighth Sense.
The Mind Stone nourished his spirit, helping him better comprehend the path to the Eighth Sense.
That was enough.
As for the Time Stone—
Next time he came, if the new Sorcerer Supreme refused to lend it to him, he could always just take it back by force. Same result either way.
With those words, Hawk gave the Vishanti mural a slight smile, turned, took a single step—
—and found himself in the reception hall.
Gwen, who'd been having tea with the Ancient One, noticed the sudden silence from the Sorcerer Supreme. She blinked in confusion, then turned to look.
The next second, Her face lit up with joy as she sprang from her seat and threw her arms around Hawk.
"God, Hawk—you're finally out! Do you have any idea how long you were gone this time?"
"Ten days."
Hawk answered without hesitation.
Having mastered his own timeline, he was now extraordinarily sensitive to the passage of time. The moment his foot had crossed the threshold, he'd known exactly how long he'd been in seclusion.
But...
In truth, he'd experienced over a century of comprehension. The Time Stone had simply stretched his perception of time infinitely.
Not that it mattered.
What mattered was—
He, Hawk—was now a Gold Saint!
Hawk led Gwen back to the tea table and took a seat across from the Ancient One.
"Thank you."
"Please."
The Ancient One smiled faintly, accepting Hawk's gratitude, then placed a freshly poured cup of tea before him.
Hawk took a sip, savored it briefly, then drained the cup in one go.
After a while.
Gwen stood and excused herself to pack her things in the guest room.
Hawk turned his gaze to the Ancient One. "You knew from the start that something was wrong with my origins. That's why you reminded me about the time loop?"
At first, he'd assumed the Ancient One's reminder was about completing the time loop involving him and Jean.
Even without the reminder, he would have remembered that detail during his comprehension of time.
But after discovering the breach in his own timeline—after finding the viral bird-man who'd invaded it—he recalled the Ancient One's words once more.
And yet—
"When exactly did Yahweh invade my timeline?"
"About a month ago."
The Ancient One finished pouring tea. "Every fluctuation in time is recorded within the Eye of Agamotto. The past cannot be changed."
Hawk chuckled. "I never intended to change it. Andrew's death is a temporal anchor point. I understand that perfectly."
He wasn't some idiot like the Flash, who relied on his speed to reverse time at will.
Everyone knew you could never tell how many different versions of the Flash were present on the night his mother died.
Barry Allen had tried to alter the timeline.
And what happened?
He'd turned his own timeline into a complete disaster. Every change spawned a more powerful enemy.
The consequences were endless.
But...
Hawk thought for a moment, then looked at the Ancient One. "Knowing that we weren't deliberately abandoned—that knowledge will make my sister Anya very happy."
The Ancient One held her teacup, smiling warmly as she watched him speak.
"And you?"
"Me."
Hearing those words, Hawk smiled faintly and lifted his own cup.
"The past cannot be changed."
"So..."
"Here's to the future."
He raised his cup toward the Ancient One, clinked it against hers, drained it in one go, then asked with a grin: "When will I see you next?"
The Ancient One refilled both their cups, then lowered her hands naturally and regarded Hawk.
"Did you really not look at any of your future?"
"Not at all."
Hawk shook his head decisively. Then, remembering that seductive future node beckoning him like some shameless temptress, he added: "I have no desire to see my entire future laid out before me. I prefer the unknown—it keeps me excited about what's to come."
Hearing Hawk describe how he'd remained unmoved by the temptation of the future while standing on the timeline, the Ancient One shook her head. "Odin and I weren't as strong as you."
Because the temptation Hawk described—both she and Odin had experienced it.
But unlike Hawk.
She and Odin had both chosen to look.
After all, Odin had just conquered the Nine Realms back then. Ambitious and in his prime, Odin had consumed the Fruit of Wisdom, declared himself supreme above heaven and earth, and stolen a glance at the future—
Only to witness Ragnarök.
She'd been no different.
But her situation was slightly distinct from Odin's.
Odin, in his arrogance, had wanted to see the future of the Nine Realms, and so he'd witnessed the Twilight of the Gods.
The Ancient One had wanted to see whether her future self would succeed in protecting Earth.
She remembered that time clearly—freshly chosen by the Vishanti, wielding the Time Stone to suppress every dimensional demon, finally restoring peace to Earth. Then, standing upon the timeline, she'd been seduced by the future and glimpsed... her own death.
From that moment on, she'd used the Time Stone to observe every possible future, desperately searching for a way to extend her own timeline.
And then...
She'd seen Hawk arriving at her doorstep, seeking to borrow the Time Stone and the payment he'd promised in return.
As they spoke—
Gwen had finished packing.
Seeing this, Hawk drained his final cup of tea, rose from the cushion, and was about to leave when he turned back to the Ancient One.
"Is there anything you need me to do?"
"See you in the future."
The Ancient One stood with her hands clasped behind her back, a serene smile on her face.
Understanding her meaning, Hawk laughed softly, returned the farewell with his own "See you in the future," then walked over to Gwen.
Gwen stood with a single-strap bag containing a few changes of clothes slung over her shoulder, arms open wide.
Hawk wrapped his arms around her.
One step forward!
Whoosh—
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~# 70 Advanced Chapters Available on my Patreon!
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