This chapter was inspired by the comic run named Nick Fury's Secret War. Not to be confused with the actual Secret Wars.
2:30AM
Upon arriving in Transia, each of them took on the roles they were assigned to do. They took up a strategic position in the center of the town. Wanda used her telepathic abilities to clear the town of any civilians while Blade and Doctor Strange went over to Elsa's home just a few miles west of Transia. It was usually the meeting place for all monster hunters, but now she transformed it into her home. (*Watch Werewolf by Night*)
It was a cold night with the mist covering everything further than a few feet away. Elsa was always a night owl, but now with her newfound abilities thanks to the blood stone, she doesn't need much sleep at all. She was sitting in front of a fireplace inside her home, reading a book when she heard a knock on the door. She looked at the door in confusion and ignored it. But after the knocking continued, she shouted from irritation.
Elsa: Get lost!
Blade: Elsa Bloodstone?
Elsa: Sorry, wrong residence. Now go away! It's almost 3AM in the bloody morning!
Doctor Strange: Elsa. My name is Doctor Stephen Strange and we need your help.
There was a silence for a moment, then Elsa opened the door.
Elsa: Doctor Strange... What brings you here so early in the morning? And how do you know who I am?
She looks at Blade.
Elsa: Blade? I thought you were dead.
Blade: Well what a disappointment that must be to you. Also, what made you think I was dead?
Elsa: Maybe because I haven't seen or heard from you in years. Look, what happened back then... It's all in the past. But the fact that you're here with Doctor Strange tells me everything I need to know.
Blade: So you're not mad at me for... You know.
Elsa: Oh I am still mad. But only the foolish hold grudges.
She stood aside to invite them in.
Doctor Strange: I appreciate your hospitality but we do not really have the time for coffee.
Elsa looked at Strange with intrigue.
Elsa: Do enlighten me.
Blade: To make it quick, we have reason to believe that a very powerful being that was trapped inside the blood stone for millions of years is sending zombies from another universe to attack our world. We think his goal might be to possibly destroy the blood stone, and he will decimate the entire planet to get his hands on it.
Elsa: So that's what it takes for you to show up again? After all these years?
Doctor Strange: If he manages to escape his confinement, he could destroy the entire world and wreak havoc on the natural order. He could disrupt all of reality with his presence.
Elsa: What do you mean there's a being inside my blood stone?
Doctor Strange: His name is Chthon. The father of all supernatural aspects of reality, as well as sorcery. The blood stone was created to trap him inside. It transported him to some sort of limbo dimension. The stone is the only thing keeping him from fully accessing our plane of existence.
Elsa: So let me guess. You want my help to prevent these creatures from reaching the blood stone.
Blade: We figured it is of no use to try and hide the stone, since he knows where it is. The only thing we can do is face him head on. You are its wielder, so it is only fitting that you aid us in this crisis.
Elsa: Doesn't look like I got much of a choice in the matter. So, what's the plan?
Blade: Try not to die.
A transition takes place, to a year after this event, where Wanda is sitting in front of Professor Charles Xavier, trying to recall what happened.
Wanda: Try not to die.
Professor X: That's all that went through your mind during that moment?
Wanda: Yes. We were standing in the center of the town, waiting. I kept thinking to myself, try not to die. Try not to die. It was the most frightened I've been since...
Professor X: Since when?
Wanda: Since... Vision was attacked on the Island. That's the last thing I remember of that night. Everything after that is a blur.
Wanda is currently being held with mutant dampening handcuffs in a top secret level where she was being "hypnotized" by Professor Charles Xavier. Also known as Professor X. There were agents in the other room from across the glass, observing the conversation. Wanda was already in the trance, with her eyes closed.
Professor X: So that was the last thing you remember? Going to Transia?
Wanda: Yes, but the thing is, I have this...this... horrible feeling in my gut. Something very bad happened that night. But I don't... I can't... remember... Why can't I remember!? I am telling you the truth, okay? I didn't do what they think I did.
Professor X: Are you sure?
Wanda: I...
Professor X: Cause they have compelling evidence that proves otherwise.
Wanda: I Don't know! Okay? I don't remember!
Professor X: A lot of people presumably died that night. A lot went missing. Including Logan and Stephen Strange! Does the word "Chthon" ring any bells?
Wanda immediately reacted by hearing that name. A fear came over her unlike anything she has ever felt before. A chilling feeling, without knowing why. She breathed heavily and her nails screeched over the table in front of her.
Wanda: Don't... Say that name...
Professor X: Wanda, you are in distress. You need to calm down for this to work. I'm taking your mind forward in time by about 10 minutes after you went to Transia. Just 10 minutes. You need to show me what you remember.
She could feel the memory coming back to her, slowly but surely. But her mind fought against it.
Wanda: No no no... I... I told you I don't remember!
Professor X: You don't remember? Or maybe you don't WANT to remember. Which is it, Wanda?
(This also sets up my Scarlet Witch book)
Back in Transia, Wanda's memories of the event are shown.
2:40 AM, 20 minutes before the event.
The sky began cracking open, revealing a purple opening.
The Midnight Suns stood in the center of town, awaiting their arrival. The Punisher and Elsa took sniping spots on two different buildings. The dead silence created an aura of tension as they waited for the swarm to ambush them. But what they feared the most was the idea that if they were to fail, Chthon himself would emerge from the shadows.
The Punisher: What the hell are they waiting for?
Doctor Strange: Something's not right.
Agatha flew in the air to see if they appear anywhere in the town when she suddenly saw a portal a few blocks away behind them. She then saw multiple zombies silently approaching them from behind and others hiding behind buildings in front.
Agatha: They knew we were waiting! It's a trap! They've already breached through!
In an instant, they were swarmed by zombies from all angles. Some climbed on top of the roof where Punisher layed with his sniper. He quickly turned around and took out his shotgun, shooting them one by one, reloading, shooting again, reloading.
The Punisher: This is not how I go out! I will kill every one of you!
Elsa was also busy fighting other zombies on the other roof.
Elsa: A little help would be really appreciated right about now!
Coulson was on comms from inside the W.A.N.D. headquarters.
Coulson: Wanda, Agatha, I need you airborn! Now!
Wanda was busy fighting on the ground, still overwhelmed by the amount of zombies all over them, she was using her powers to construct energy fields, protect her and her allies from being overrun.
Wanda: Kinda busy right now!
Agatha: On it.
Agatha flew in the air and took out all the zombies on the two roofs.
2:45 AM 15 minutes before the event.
(Now we are caught up with the events that led to the sequence in the beginning of chapter 1.)
As the fight went on, Logan's age began catching up to him. So he decided to take a moment to catch his breath behind a broken car, taking out a cigarette. He looked at Ghost Rider fighting a horde of zombies in front of him.
Wolverine: Hey, Ghosty... Would you mind... You know... Forgot my lighter.
Ghost rider turned his head and looked at him indifferently. Then he burned up Wolverine's cigarette by looking at it.
Wolverine: Hey! What the heck!
Logan was then suddenly ambushed by hordes of zombies from behind.
He sliced through them with his metal claws but more kept coming.
Wolverine: I can't even catch one second to have a smoak!
He started to scream in rage and charged toward them.
Wolverine: RRRRRRAAAAAAHHH!!!!!!
He raged through the hordes of Zombies. One by one they fell to the ground, but there was no sign that they were getting any lesser in numbers.
A few feet away from him, Blade was standing back to back with Moon Knight, fighting off another horde.
Blade: There are too many of them!
Moon Knight: This is getting ridiculous.
Elsa Bloodstone and The Punisher were standing on top of two separate roofs, gunning down as many zombies as possible while fending off the ones who were climbing up to kill them.
The Punisher: I can't believe this is how I'm gonna die... Zombies. Freakin superpowered zombies!
Elsa: As long as we keep the fight here, we can prevent these bloody lifeless parasites from infecting the rest of the world. We just need to somehow close that portal!
Doctor Strange was surrounded, trying to send as many as possible to the mirror dimension, but some of them kept coming back since some are sorcerers themselves. A few feet away from him, Wanda Maximoff cleared with ease as the zombies tried to attack her from all sides. She combined her extremely fast reflexes and combat skills with her cosmic power to kill them off one by one. Agatha was in the air, hitting them with her purple magic from above.
Agatha: We got a problem here! They are reaching the edge of town!
Doctor Strange: It's a diversion. They want our attention there so that Elsa is left alone with the blood stone.
Coulson: (on comms) Wanda, can you create a protective dome around the town?
Wanda: I'll try, but I will have to then focus all my energy to keep it up, otherwise it won't hold.
Coulson: Just do it!
Wanda flew into the air and shot a red beam into the sky, creating a hex around town, similar to what she made around Westview.
They fought for a couple of minutes until a spike occured in the portal above them.
Blade: We got more incoming!
Suddenly multiple zombified versions of heroes and villains alike, came through, with the zombie Thanos in the middle, acting as their leader.
Doctor Strange: Ah shit!
Blade: You gotta be kidding me!
Moon Knight: Well lads. It's been nice knowing y'all. We're screwed.
There were zombified variants of Doctor Strange, Wanda, Spider-Man, Wolverine, Mr. Fantastic, Hulk, Captain America, Iron Man and Thor.
The dome fell as the zombie Wanda immediately attacked Wanda in the air. Wolverine had to face yet another version of himself, but this zombified version was from a timeline where he was much younger and agile. Moon Knight an Blade got caught in a battle against zombie Hulk. The zombie Thor struck Elsa with his lightning, nearly killing her. The blood stone fell off the building.
Agatha flew to reach it, but upon grabbing the stone, she was overrun by zombies, accompanied by a zombie version of Mr. Fantastic. He stretched his arms around her body and she was unable to move. He then began tearing her apart, biting her face off. Using his flexible powers to entangle her as if she were stuck in a spider's web. The zombies began munching on her body, ripping out pieces of her flesh as she screamed in unfathomable pain. The zombie Iron Man and Thor was pre-occupied with Ghost Rider. Doctor Strange was facing his zombie variant while trying to defend himself from another horde.
When he looked to the side, he heard an agonizing scream. He saw Blade being torn to pieces, his arms and legs ripped apart, with a chunk of his arm bitten off. He then saw Moon Knight being eaten alive by the zombie Hulk, with his guts dripping from Hulk's mouth. Wolverine was drowning in a pool of his own blood, still alive due to his healing factor, being torn to pieces by hundreds munching on him like a horde of wolves devouring a piece of meat.
Doctor Strange: Abort mission! Abort! Fall back!
They were losing horribly, and the zombies were reaching outside of town.
Coulson: If you give up now, Chthon will get what he wants!
A few flying zombies attacked Wanda from all sides while still facing her variant.
Wanda: We will all die!
Coulson: We can't give up now! You need to stop this!
Doctor Strange: No!
Coulson: That is an order!
Doctor Strange: Luckily I don't work for you. (Turns off comms)
Coulson: Son of a bitch!
Coulson looked to his side with one of the agents standing next to him.
Coulson: Get Fury on the line! Now! I don't care where he is or what he's doing! This just turned into a code red...
The team tried to flee the site out of fear, but the zombies forced them into battle, forced to defend their lives, instead of defending the world. It became a thing of nightmares. The Punisher's eyes were gauged out, with another zombie biting off his right ear. Even through it all, Frank was still going.
Another transition occurs to the present day, where Wanda was being hypnotized by Professor X in a top secret Facility.
Present Day
Wanda was forced to relive this moment, but what she saw, no one could've ever seen coming. She suddenly burst into tears while reliving the tragic event inside her mind.
Wanda: I can't do this! No! Too much... Too much!
She wanted to vomit, holding her hand over her mouth.
Wanda: I want out! I want *gags*
Professor X: We are so close, just keep going. If you stop now, they will put you away for the rest of your life. Think about vision. Think about your children. The world thinks you did it. Prove them wrong.
Wanda: It's horrible! It's... So horrible! I can't, I refuse, no!
Professor X: Show me! What happened that night on 3AM!
She gave a loud, agonizing scream while in tears, as her mind fought against remembering the traumatic event.
Professor X: Push through! Let it out. Let it all out! We need to know the full truth!
Wanda: He... He got out! W-We were being picked apart... Like cotton candy. It was never a mission to stop an invasion! It was a death sentence!
Professor X: Chthon, right?
Wanda: Don't! Don't say that name... Please.
Back in transia
3AM
After the destruction of the blood stone, Chthon emerged from within. He was in a monstrous form due to all the corruption, but made himself look human-like with his magic. He didn't reveal his face. He had a torn black cloak that covered his entire body. A black smokey aura followed him like a shadow as he descended from the sky. Everything and everyone around him stood still. His voice was deep and rough, like a monster from a child's nightmares as he exclaimed his freedom.
Chthon: I aM fInAlLy FrEe!
Present Day
Wanda: That's when I knew, he was my biggest fear.
Professor X: What happened then?
Her voice trembled while barely above a whisper. Her eyes opened, showing the utter fear inside of her.
Wanda: Horror.
TO BE CONTINUED IN: