Chereads / Marvel: The Multiversal Brawl / Chapter 59 - Falling Dominoes I

Chapter 59 - Falling Dominoes I

Annie was shivering, her countenance turning red something wasn't right with her body. Seeing her in this condition, and because I had already gotten rid of the spider, Jean quickly put herself back together.

I picked Annie up in a princess carry.

'We have to take her to the hospital!'

That spider bit me and it got somehow influenced by my powers, it turned black, empty... and then the worst, it bit her. I'd be stupid not to see the relation and that's what frightened me the most. 

"Kids, we have to wait for help!" The teachers called 911 when they heard what happened, but I couldn't wait for an ambulance to come and all that nonsense. 

"I'm not going to wait for help!"

Jean and I rushed out, I didn't have my car there, we came from school by bus. With her power she unlocked a random car and started the engine, "We don't have time, the mutation may be doing something to her body!"

"But should we take her to a normal hospital?" I didn't know what to do, this was a mutant issue, I even saw her wrist start to turn black and feared she would finish like that spider... dead. 

Jean put her hand on mine, "We must take her to the hospital first, I will call Emma, she will know what to do".

I followed Jean's input, in this situation, she was unexpectedly calm and dependable. 

**

**

I don't know how she managed to do it, but Emma was faster than us, she told us what hospital we should take Annie to, in the way Jean also called Annie's dad to tell him the situation so that he'd know what hospital Annie would be at. 

"You better know not to open your mouth out of this room, doc" Emma groaned towards the frightened man who was injecting some medicament into Annie. 

She looked like she was in the middle of having a bath and tidying herself up when we called.

"I-I understand, confidentiality is my motto, Lady Madeline. As I was saying, there are odd but precedent cases in which blood infections can lead to chromosomic alterations depending on ambiguous terms of compatibility which aren't yet certified by the community. Mutants are a delicate topic, but it is safe to say, the stronger the mutation, the higher life risk as the body is exposed to foreign genes" The man explained, his name was Berone Hendricks, aside from his name I don't know much more, but it seems he's a practician specialized in mutations. 

He injected something into Annie and her countenance seemed to go visually better.

"This is a serum created to control genetic outbreaks, it is only a temporary measure" He sighed.

"So you recommend?" Emma and Jean insisted.

"As of now, all I can do for her is subscribe to stronger antibiotics to delay the spread of the foreign gene, but this is not an efficient practice, I can tell just by the appearance of physical changes that the gene is strong and soon antibiotics won't have any effect. I recommend you contact an expert biochemist with experience in treating mutants as soon as possible" He said helplessly, so even he is powerless to do anything in this situation.

"..."

We all went silent, I wanted to tell Emma that we should take Annie with Xavier, when we looked at one another, it seemed we were thinking the same: "I can only think of one person–".

"Whoever you're calling, it won't be necessary". 

!!!

Someone entered the room, it was a lady in some sort of military attire, she entered together with some sexy redhead who glared at me upon entrance. 

I stood in front of both Emma and Jean while the doctor excused himself when the woman made a hand sign, he saw the insignia on her chest and realised he better followed orders. 

SHIELD.

This wasn't any hospital, this Hospital was controlled by the Hellfire Club, located at the centre of Manhattan, and she still walked in here as if this was her turf. 

"Who are you? what rank?" Emma asked with a frown that only lessened the next second after she, I assume, read the woman's mind. 

"You are Candace Phillips, Annie's mom..." I said, it couldn't be anyone else. The woman turned towards me and nodded once; she instead walked up to the bed and caressed her daughter's face. 

"You did this, boy" I growled, was she accusing me all of a sudden?

"What the hell are you talking about?" 

"This phenomenon is related to your mutation, is it not?" She frowned too, the tension getting higher. 

"She was bitten by a spider in the science lab of British Columbia," I said. 

"Is that all that happened? Was it a poisonous spider?".

"It was a Darwin's Black Spider" Jean recalled the name.

"Those are harmless, let alone getting bitten even if she got bitten, there wouldn't be this reaction" The redhead said with a voice and glare that seemed as if challenging me. 

"How do you know?" I glared back, something she found amusing for some reason as if she hadn't seen men challenge her in a while. You're hot, woman... but you're not the only hot redhead I know. 

"She's the black widow, she would know," Candace said.

The hell is that supposed to mean? what's that? her codename in SHIELD? they take that shit a little too seriously.

"Now you're going to explain to me everything that happened, otherwise–"

"Why do I have to explain anything? It seems you're making a mistake here. You don't come here to make demands". 

I wasn't precisely in the best mood for her to be addressing me as if I were her lap dog. Once I bodied Candance, she went quiet. She raised her hand only for the 'Black Widow' to stop what she was doing, she was already reaching for her gun. 

"I know you are from SHIELD and I know you're investigating me. So what? Don't make a mistake. I care about Annie". 

The redhead frowned suddenly, both Jean and Emma were piercing her with that psychotic telepath stare that they're so good at. 

"You're not about to make a move here".

Black Widow wouldn't be able to pull out that gun even if she wanted to. 

...

A brief exchange of gazes put everyone back in their place and we calmed, this is all for Annie's sake, regardless of who we are.

"Explain to me what happened" Candace asked again, this time more politely. So I explained how everything unfolded and the fact that the spider bit me first before biting Annie. 

"Mutations tend to transfer from a stronger subject into a weaker subject or a weaker genetic pool, so to say. When the spider bit you, it mutated as the weakest gene pool compared to you and then it mutated Annie who was weaker than it. Where is the spider?"

The redhead asked, she introduced herself as Natasha Romanoff, a Russian baddie. 

"I got rid of it, I erased it" I explained. Jean was pinching my waist for some reason, so I raised my gaze to finally stare Natasha in the eyes. 

Candace Phillips' expression was solemn, "Then we can't delay. I will take Annie with me". 

I frowned for a second but ended up nodding, she couldn't be in safer hands than her mother's, also SHIELD is a specialized strategic organisation with a lot of budget, I'm sure they have to be at least as capable as Charles Xavier to deal with this. 

"If I want to see her, how?" I asked. 

"You won't see my daughter again" Candace answered straightforwardly, and that's when she tested my limits. 

"She's my girlfriend. I don't give a fuck if I have to storm shield to see her, don't make things difficult for yourself". 

The room went silent, Candance gasped, looking at my face, before she regained her composure. Still, she wasn't about to get intimidated by an abomination, foolish her. This is not intimidation, this is a threat. 

Natasha stood in between us even though her eyes quivered staring at my hollow ones, I don't know where she get all these balls for when she's such a woman. 

"Boy, it seems you don't understand–" 

"It is you who doesn't understand, mother-in-law" I pressed my chest against the redhead, forcing them to take one step back. 

"You investigate me, you know what I am capable of, and you show up here with just this one redhead trying to make demands? Just by yourselves?" 

Candace Phillips stared at me neutrally before smiling once. I saw something that blinded me a bit, a flashing red light coming from the window. 

!!!

A red dot settled on my forehead. Then at Jean and Emma's, then they were dozens. I see, it was me who was foolish, thinking these two who had been investigating me, would come here to deal with me on their own. 

"Never said it was just ourselves, Ray Stark". 

I laughed, "You think bullets will do?" 

Even though I said that, inwardly I was worried about Jean. Emma had already donned her diamond form but Jean was vulnerable. 

"The question is whether those two can take a single special calibre round, I'd use something stronger against you, sweetheart" The redhead smirked. 

Once again, with the tensions high, we had to take one step back. It wasn't the moment nor the place to fight.

"Very well, you can take her. Whatever you and I think about each other is not important. Take Annie, that's what's important. I don't care, I will find her... what matters is that she's safe" I asserted, taking one step back. 

Candace gasped, "At least you make some sense, brat. We will talk, trust me on that". 

She made some hand signs and a group of men entered the room, put Annie on a table and carried her away,

"I hope you won't use your daughter for your own merits, the mutant registration act–" 

"It has nothing to do with me, I'm not sponsoring it. I'm this kid's mom, that's all" She said and walked away, at least she doesn't plan to use Annie for any agendas. 

The redhead remained. 

"I'm watching you, Ray Stark". 

"You don't say". 

"You think you're funny…?" She smirked mysteriously, "I am assigned to some more annoying and troublesome fellow, you two could probably hang out... since you both have the same gimmicks".

She started at Emma and Jean once, "You're both womanizers".

"I don't know who you're talking about".

"You will know soon–"

"Listen up, redhead. If you got nothing of value to say, stop flirting with my boyfriend" Emma wasn't having it, "One redhead in my life is enough so you be on your way".

"I agree" Jean pouted, she wasn't about to have her redhead supremacy shattered. 

"Truly two sides of the same coin, see you soon".

Natasha left, shortly after we looked through the window a suspicious jet set off from the hospital's roof, disappearing in the distance, it was silent. Advanced technology. 

"At least now we don't have to worry too much about Annie, thanks for everything, Emma".

"Anytime~" My blonde kissed me, she did so well this time around.

"What should we do now, Ray?" Jean asked me, "Return to the lab?".

"Forget it... we are gone, they told us classes were finished for the day. Instead, we can go out, have some fun and start planning..."

"Planning?".

"Planning how we're going to take down Shaw before the week is finished".