Before his consciousness completely faded, Vision transmitted all his discoveries back to Earth, sending them to Falcon's terminal.
This also meant that the android could never return to Earth—never see Falcon again.
"No—" Hearing the one he loved perish in the depths of space, Falcon was overwhelmed with grief, and even tears streaked down his usually resolute face.
"What did he say?"
Monica anxiously shouted at Falcon. What she wanted to know now was whether Vision had inflicted any damage on that thing.
If Vision had managed to hurt it, then it meant the creature wasn't invincible—that there was still a way to defeat it. But if he hadn't…
Then perhaps their only remaining hope now rested on Reed.
Before they even finished their discussion, a drastic change had already occurred in New York City.
A massive figure had descended into the heart of the city, its body clad in purple armor. His face was devoid of emotion, solemn like a god—but to those in New York, he was nothing but the embodiment of fear.
The Planet Devourer had arrived on Earth.
Such a colossal presence could no longer be ignored, even by S.H.I.E.L.D.
Everyone could see the figure of the Planet Devourer, and he was observing the planet beneath his feet.
He turned to glance at the helicopters buzzing around him like flies. He showed no reaction, simply letting them circle as they pleased. Then, he started to walk forward.
Each step of the towering figure was like a natural disaster to the people nearby—cars on the roads exploded, and buildings near his feet crumbled like sandcastles.
To this godlike giant, everything was meaningless.
He walked slowly forward, completely indifferent to how many died or how many buildings were destroyed in his path. The only thing on his mind was to devour this planet's energy.
The Planet Devourer raised both hands, and an endless stream of cosmic energy began to converge and burst forth between them.
All the objects he had destroyed now seemed to respond to a silent summons, flying toward the orb of cosmic energy gathering before him.
Even some humans who hadn't managed to escape were dragged into it.
It seemed as though he was building something.
At this moment, Alpha One had arrived near the Planet Devourer. Surrounding Alpha One were countless escorting fighter jets—F-22s, Quinjet squadrons—every available force had been deployed.
S.H.I.E.L.D. had already reported the situation in New York to Bruce and the others in Europe. All they could do now was pray that their assault would be effective—and afterward, that Bruce and his team could deliver a meaningful countermeasure.
"This is Director Monica Zhang!!" Monica was issuing commands from inside S.H.I.E.L.D., "Notify all senior commanders—this is a universe-level threat!!!"
"All units, to battle stations!!!"
"This is not a drill!!! I repeat, this is not a drill!!!"
The command room was now under its highest alert level. Crimson light bathed the entire room, perhaps helping to sharpen everyone's decision-making.
It also served as a constant reminder of just how dire the situation was.
"According to the readings, this is an energy level we've never encountered before! New York is completely lost!! Prepare all weapons in the full defense system! Once you're ready, lock on your targets and open fire! I mean everything you've got!!!!"
Monica stared at the Planet Devourer on the screen, and also at the figures of the superheroes. There was only one thing left to do—eliminate the massive being that had already flattened a third of Midtown Manhattan.
All armed forces outside were now primed and ready to launch an assault on the Planet Devourer at any moment.
"Fire!"
At Monica's command, all fighter jets emptied their payloads. Alpha One unleashed a barrage of heavy firepower—every available weapon was hurled at the Planet Devourer.
But Monica wasn't satisfied. She ordered another wave of firepower from Alpha One to be concentrated entirely on the target.
Yet when the smoke cleared, the Planet Devourer stood unscathed.
He even reached out, attempting to seize the hovering Alpha One.
But Monica wasn't about to give him the chance. She immediately pulled Alpha One back out of his range.
Still, the Planet Devourer didn't seem intent on capturing Alpha One. Instead, he resumed gathering energy.
Cars and buildings around him were all pulled up into the air.
The apocalyptic scene caused countless New Yorkers—who had still hoped to flee—to collapse to the ground in despair. They stared at the colossal figure, utterly powerless.
"Where are the heroes?!"
It wasn't just a cry from New York's citizens—it was also Monica's question.
The moment the Planet Devourer descended, the members of the Ultimate Team had left the command room and Alpha One. That left Monica clueless as to what exactly they were doing.
Just then, a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent called out to Monica.
"Director, I think I found them!! They're over there."
Under Susan's control, each member of the Ultimate Team stood on a flying disc allowing them to hover in midair.
Aside from those who could fly on their own, the others were already airborne. Human Torch was even darting circles around the Planet Devourer.
"Oh my god, oh my god!!" Susan stared at the hellish scene before her. Words failed her.
Even with her vast knowledge, she couldn't clearly describe the catastrophe unfolding in front of her.
Captain America took a deep breath, then shouted to all Ultimate Team members: "Stay sharp, everyone! Keep your guard up at all times!!"
The Thing had been wondering whether they could communicate with the Planet Devourer, but given the current situation, there was little hope left for diplomacy.
Thor answered him.
"Let me try!"
With a shout, Thor swung his hammer and summoned a massive thunderbolt that slammed straight into the Planet Devourer's face. Lightning illuminated the sky and ground, turning everything into a world of blinding light.
Under cover of the lightning, Human Torch unleashed his full power.
A torrent of flame followed the thunderbolt and struck the Planet Devourer's face. The intense heat made even Thor glance sideways.
Then came another surge of thunder.
The Ultimate Team had unleashed their strongest attacks on the Planet Devourer.
But as the smoke cleared, the flames died down, and the thunder faded...
The Planet Devourer standing before them remained completely unscathed.
He directly reached out with one hand, launching an attack toward the members of the Ultimate Team. At that moment, Susan activated her protective force field, shielding everyone.
"Everyone, stay calm. I've got you," Susan shouted as she struggled to maintain her force field.
"What the hell is this thing?" Captain America had never imagined that one day he would be fighting such a monster—one that seemed completely immune to all their attacks.
"What do we do next?" Hawkeye had no idea how they were supposed to fight an opponent that could withstand endless assaults head-on.
Just then, an enormous mechanical structure appeared beside the Planet Devourer's hand.
It was a device reassembled from the wreckage he had caused on Earth, reconstructed using the materials he had destroyed.
He slammed the device heavily onto the ground.
The Ultimate Team was locked in combat with the Planet Devourer, while across the cities of Europe, Bruce and his team had located the universe where the Planet Devourer originally belonged.
"We found it."
Reed stood with his hands on his hips, a trace of pride in his voice, but Stark stood beside him, frowning—he had just received news from his teammates.
The Ultimate Team had already engaged in battle with the Planet Devourer—with something that didn't even belong to their universe.
Stark looked up at Bruce, trying to gauge whether this bat was aware of the situation they were in.
"I once captured someone from this universe," Bruce recalled the Mysterio, who was still imprisoned—that guy was from this universe, wasn't he?
"Then find him," Stark knew exactly who Bruce meant. After all, once Bruce apprehended those individuals, he typically handed them over to S.H.I.E.L.D.
S.H.I.E.L.D. had a prison specifically used to detain those captured by the Bat.
"You take Reed and get out of here," Bruce said to Stark before pressing a button on his gauntlet. Instantly, Reed collapsed to the ground, his body completely limp.
"When did you—?"
Reed had no idea when Bruce had done something to him, let alone that he could incapacitate him so swiftly.
Stark had initially been wondering how he was supposed to carry Reed like this, but now, he felt like he could easily haul away a hundred Reeds in this state.
"What are you staying here for?"
Stark rolled Reed up into a ball and didn't forget to ask Bruce what exactly he planned to do by staying.
Bruce didn't respond. Instead, he instructed the City to teleport Stark and Reed away.
"If you don't want to talk, fine." Stark didn't press further. He grabbed Reed and flew toward New York, while also connecting to Monica's communications.
"Tell me you didn't attack that big guy."
Monica was momentarily stunned by Stark's message before replying, "If we don't attack, what do you expect us to do—just let him destroy all of New York?"
"Do not engage the entity. Disarm immediately!!!"
Bruce was now speeding toward New York. He didn't care how the acceleration might affect Reed. All he wanted was to get back to the battlefield and stop those idiots from continuing their attacks.
"We're preparing to unleash full firepower!" Monica still believed their firepower had simply been insufficient, so she had mobilized every available force in the area.
"Stop! I repeat—do NOT attack the entity!!! It will only make things worse!!!"
Stark shouted into the comms. He could already see the Planet Devourer standing tall in Midtown Manhattan.
"How much worse can it get, Stark?! New York is already @#￥@#￥ falling apart!!!"
Despite her frustration, Monica heeded Stark's warning and began ordering all units to retreat from the Planet Devourer.
"Alpha Squad, mission terminated! I repeat, mission terminated! Fall back immediately!"
After issuing the command, Monica could only hope Stark was right.
"Get the multiversal intruder out of Bat Prison. He's from the same universe—maybe he knows something useful." Stark hadn't forgotten what Bruce had said, and quickly relayed it to Monica.
At that moment, Monica noticed a figure rapidly approaching the Planet Devourer.
From such a distance, she mistakenly thought Alpha Squad had launched an attack.
"Alpha Squad, didn't I tell you not to engage?!"
But the reply confirmed that Alpha Squad had already retreated. Whatever was speeding toward the Planet Devourer—it wasn't a rocket or missile.
When they zoomed in on the image, they finally saw the figure clearly—it was Miles Morales.
This Spider-Man had apparently clung to one of Alpha Squad's jets to get close, and now he had launched himself straight onto the Planet Devourer's helmet.
"What the hell is he doing!?!?"
No one could understand Miles' actions—not even Miles himself.
It wasn't until he got close that Miles truly realized how insignificant he was.
He didn't know what this thing was. He didn't know if this was the end of the world. He didn't even think his spider powers could help in any way.
But the Planet Devourer had already noticed this annoying little insect and reached out, attempting to grab him.
In the next instant, a golden streak of light yanked Miles off the helmet.
It was Thor.
Back in the City, Bruce was working on something in front of him.
"Remember the dimensional travel wristband I assembled here before?"
Bruce looked up at the City's massive robotic face.
"This time, I'm building a bigger one—a one-way ticket."
"But no one can put it on him," the City coldly pointed out. No one could attach a travel wristband to the Planet Devourer.
"I'll make it work," Bruce replied and immediately buried himself in his work.
(End of chapter)
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