"When Earth was not yet Earth, but Midgard, it belonged to the World Tree Parallel Cosmos, where Thor resided."
"...Later, Earth fell from the World Tree, and at that moment, it became just Earth."
"A seed followed Earth's fall and took root."
"Yahweh came along with his Heaven Dimension."
"He came with a mission."
"Just as Mephisto is a Lord of Death under Death, Yahweh was also created by someone."
"Earth is Yahweh's pasture, responsible for providing nutrients to the Celestial God incubating within."
"When Earth's life reaches a critical point, the germinating seed will break through the ground."
"But Yahweh is not the only one with designs on Earth."
"Mephisto also has his ideas."
"Then..."
"Mephisto defeated Yahweh and his Heaven Dimension and claimed Earth."
"Now, Yahweh and his Heaven Dimension have returned."
"...That Red Apple is the best proof."
"It must have been left by Yahweh when he departed, specially for this day."
"Because Dr. Merick claimed, he received God's oracle, using the Red Apple to clone repeatedly, laundering the formatted souls within the Red Apple like money, then killing them and casting these souls into Hell."
"They are trying to create a Death Angel to defeat Mephisto and take Hell, while reclaiming Earth to quickly allow the seed to sprout."
"This—"
"is the truth of this dimensional war."
Sitting back on the deck stairs, Hawk, as he promised, told Sharon the whole story without hiding anything.
Sharon's expression changed continuously, just as Hawk imagined, as the story was told.
Shock.
Incredulity.
And confusion, three expressions alternated on Sharon's face like a dramatic performance.
Her inner self was turbulent, and her faith, faced with the truth, began to falter.
Sharon tried to stabilize her impending collapsed faith.
Unfortunately...
Just like a defeated army falling back in disarray.
Faith was no exception.
At the moment Hawk's words ended, Sharon's faith collapsed!
A moment later.
Sharon looked up at Hawk, her voice slightly hoarse: "So, is God here to destroy us this time?"
Hawk nodded.
"Yes."
"I..."
Sharon opened her mouth, looking at Hawk: "I need a moment to process this news."
Hawk nodded.
"Understood."
"Thank you."
With her faith crumbling at this moment, Sharon forced out a wry smile: "So, what does S.H.I.E.L.D. need to do?"
Getting up from the deck again, Hawk looked at Sharon, who, even now with her faith shattered but still sticking to her profession, smiled and said: "Nothing needs to be done; this war is irrelevant to ordinary people."
This is a dimensional war between Hell and Heaven.
Irrelevant to ordinary people.
Sharon also stood up again.
"But you said that if God defeats Mephisto, he will destroy Earth."
"Uh..."
Hawk blinked, looking at the agitated Sharon: "So, you hope God doesn't win?"
Sharon shook her head: "I hope for world peace."
If she had to choose between faith and world peace.
She chooses the latter.
World peace.
She believed in God because her mother told her she should believe in God when she was young, but believing in world peace was something she actively chose to believe in.
That's also why she joined S.H.I.E.L.D.
If choosing between faith in God and faith in world peace.
Once again.
She chooses world peace.
"So..."
Sharon exhaled a deep breath, sweeping away her collapsed faith in God into the trash, then looked at Hawk with determination: "What can S.H.I.E.L.D. do to prevent this from happening."
Hawk, seeing Sharon's momentarily changed aura, was also a bit surprised and raised his eyebrows.
But...
"You guys really don't need to do anything."
"But..."
"Don't forget, God dragged me into this."
Hawk's lips curved upwards, looking at Sharon: "Rest assured, when it's time for them to help, I won't be shy."
Upon hearing this, Sharon realized.
Oh right.
The cloned bodies used by Dr. Merick were all Hawk's clones.
Goodness.
Shearing one sheep relentlessly?
Sharon recalled the jumbled, variously decomposed Hawk clones amidst the exploded mountain ruins on Molokai Island, then looked at the smiling Hawk before her.
For some reason, she suddenly envisioned Hawk, as he destroyed Wakanda, now destroying Heaven.
Very fast.
The story is finished.
Hawk stood up, soared into the sky, and sped towards New York City.
Standing on the speedboat, Sharon watched Hawk disappear into the distance, then turned her eyes away, took a deep breath, and took out her satellite phone to contact S.H.I.E.L.D. Headquarters.
High above the clouds.
Hawk was using the Reality Gemstone to lower his presence, flying towards New York City at a steady pace, while his mind delved into his Little Cosmos.
Whoosh.
Netherworld, in the Frozen Nether Prison among the Eight Great Nether Prisons.
On the vast eternal permafrost, Alexander Pierce, once alone, was no longer solitary.
Because there was now someone beside him.
Dr. Merick.
At this moment, Alexander Pierce was walking on the eternal permafrost with a numb expression, against the sky full of wind and snow, completely ignoring the cries of Dr. Merick, who seemed perplexed upon his arrival.
At that moment.
Hawk suddenly appeared before the two.
Dr. Merick looked at Hawk, who had appeared abruptly, and froze for a moment before quickly exposing himself.
"Samael, you truly are a rebellious angel."
"God gave you a chance to start over, yet you betray again..."
"Bang!"
Hawk's eyes squinted slightly and instantly blasted this fool, unable to see reality, thousands of miles away, disinterested in conversation to avoid lowering his own intelligence.
Alexander Pierce raised his eyes to glance at Hawk with a numb look, then withdrew his gaze, ignoring Dr. Merick, who had been blown away, and walked mechanically forward.
Hawk smiled slightly, turned to look at Alexander Pierce, who ignored him and passed by.
Is he frostbitten?
Hawk thought, and with a thought, temporarily froze the Frozen Nether Prison.
"Pierce!"
"..."
Alexander Pierce stopped in his tracks at the voice, felt the suddenly halted storm and omnipresent cold, paused for a moment, then slowly turned around to meet Hawk's gaze.
"Mr. Phoenix."
"Calling me Mister still?"
Hawk looked at Alexander, who because he hadn't spoken for a long time, had a voice like dried wood: "How many times have you died?"
Alexander showed no expression.
"I don't remember, after dying 13,500 times, I stopped counting."
"So many?"
Listening to Alexander Pierce's count, Hawk raised an eyebrow, then smiled and said, "Do you regret it? If you regret it, I can let you leave here."
In the depth of Alexander Pierce's numb eyes, a glimmer of light flashed.
No one who hasn't experienced the Frozen Nether Prison understands its despair.
An endless permafrost that seems impossible to escape, with eternal howling winds and constant snowfall.
Alexander Pierce once tried to commit suicide, attempting to escape.
But the fact was he overthought it.
He couldn't escape from here, not without Hawk's permission.
Right now...
Alexander Pierce instinctively looked at Hawk: "You really would let me out?"
Hawk said calmly: "I've left you in here long enough, and you've died so many times. You should know why I imprisoned you here."
Alexander was silent for a while, nodding.
"Anna."
"Yes."
Hawk nodded, looking at Alexander Pierce: "Tell me where you've hidden Anna, and I'll pardon you, let you leave the Frozen Nether Prison. Perhaps you can't reach the Pure Land, but you can live in the Netherworld."
Alexander Pierce's mouth twitched, then he withdrew his gaze.
"Here is... fine."
"Ha!"
Hawk laughed directly at those words.
"Pierce, didn't you see Dr. Merick?"
"Yes."
"I know Dr. Merick and you were cloning me. Dr. Merick is also here now, so you should be aware that your plan to clone me and then kill me has failed."
"So..."
"Is there any point in persisting? I said before, I wouldn't give you any chances."
"But now, I'm giving you one last chance."
"Anna."
"Where is she? Tell me, and I'll pardon you."
"I never give anyone two chances, but you—I've given you two chances, Pierce. This is your last chance, don't disappoint me!"
Hawk doesn't have many friends, you can count them on one hand.
No.
Visible to the naked eye.
As of now, the few numbers on his phone contacts mean a few friends.
But among these few phone numbers, there's one which never connects.
So...
Indeed.
He missed Anna, it has nothing to do with anything else, just friendship, as he always said, when he makes friends, he doesn't care about camps, as long as he recognizes them, they are his friends.
Anna is his friend, and Alexander Pierce in front of him is the only one who knows where Anna is.
Therefore, for Anna, he is willing to give Alexander Pierce one last chance.
The final chance.
...