Peaceful, quiet New York City.
That peace shattered the moment the first gunshot rang out in the dead of night. From that instant on, chaos and madness consumed the streets.
Under the guise of "cleansing the city of mutant terrorists," mobs stormed into the homes of ordinary citizens, smashing everything in sight and looting whatever gold and valuables they could lay their hands on.
Most had no idea what was really going on. The lucky few with quicker instincts fled the city with their families. But for the rest—those who hesitated—the world's sudden collapse swallowed them whole.
Men's cries of agony, women's screams of terror, and the roars of bloodthirsty rioters echoed beneath the night sky. It was a night fated to be sleepless.
Alex moved silently in the shadows, careful not to draw attention as he crept through narrow alleyways, inching closer to his destination.
A stray alley cat yelped and leapt from a trash can, startled by his footsteps.
"Shhh."
Alex held a finger to his lips toward the cat—though whether it could understand didn't matter. He turned away and melted once more into the darkness.
"177A Bleecker Street. Should be nearby, right?"
Miss Minutes hovered beside him, her ethereal glow visible only to Alex.
[Yes, sir. According to the archived files, the special building you're searching for should be just around here.]
To avoid detection by the Dark Observers, Alex had completely suppressed his powers and concealed all magical signatures. For now, he was indistinguishable from a normal human being.
Though stripped of his mystical abilities, with Miss Minutes's aid, Alex could still open portals and travel anywhere within this universe—albeit at a heavy energy cost.
Thankfully, energy was the one thing Alex had in abundance. Before arriving here, the chronometer had been fully charged, so he still had plenty of reserves.
"I remember searching for the Sanctum Sanctorum in the Ruined Universe… but when I got there, the place had nothing magical at all. What should've been a sanctuary was just some rundown nightclub," Alex said absently.
[Variations are expected across multiverses. I suspect this one still holds a clue or two for your investigation.]
"I hope you're right."
Alex gave a weary shake of his head. He wasn't expecting much.
Still, if he was going to unravel the mystery of this world, the Sanctum Sanctorum was a place he couldn't afford to skip.
And since Dean and Sam had no prior exposure to magic—or at least, not to the kind practiced in this world, which differed wildly from the Hunter magic they knew in their own—this journey was one Alex had to undertake alone.
Passing 175A, a thin mist began to rise on the road ahead.
Alex halted, his gaze cold and fixed on the hazy veil drifting toward him.
Though calling it "mist" wasn't quite accurate—it wasn't vapor at all. It was warped, fractured magical energy, bleeding through the fabric of reality and distorting the material world itself.
"Looks like we've found it," Alex said quietly.
Back when he still had access to his full powers, Alex could've used the Eye of the Sorcerer to pierce through this illusion, or summoned just a spark of his internal arcane force to part the barrier with ease. But now, he had only the Time Regulator to rely on.
[Shall I open a portal straight into the Sanctum Sanctorum, sir?]
Miss Minutes stood excitedly on his shoulder, her glow softly pulsing.
"No need," Alex replied, shaking his head gently.
"You'll trigger the mist's retaliation. This energy wasn't placed here at random—it's meant to guard the Sanctum. Forcing our way in will only provoke a magical defense."
[Then how do you plan to enter a dimension layered beneath reality itself? Don't forget, sir—you're just a normal human right now.]
"That's exactly why I can enter," Alex replied.
He raised a foot and stepped directly into the mist.
Just as he suspected, the veil only repelled those with hostile intent or those corrupted by dark forces. But to someone who appeared, on every level, to be an average human, it showed no resistance.
"Looks like no one's maintained this place for quite a while," Alex murmured, casually lifting his hand.
But the mist didn't swirl or shift around his movement. It just... hung there, static, as if he were waving through a hologram.
Given Alex's knowledge of magic, he could tell this mist existed between dimensions—anchored both in the magical realm and the physical world. But now, even a physical breeze had no effect on it.
Which could mean only one thing.
Something was wrong—most likely, something had gone terribly wrong within the magical dimension itself.
Alex moved forward unimpeded. After walking for around ten minutes, he finally looked up—and found himself standing in front of an old, timeworn building.
He raised his gaze to the unique, circular window above, shaped like a rune-bearing seal that resembled a mystical glyph—almost like an ancient sigil of the Well. Alex quietly pulled his coat tighter around him.
"This is the place."
-------------------------
Elsewhere in the city—
On the opposite end, James Howlett—better known as Wolverine—was scouring the streets, searching for any trace of Charles and the others.
Ever since Blink joined their team, staying hidden had become significantly easier. With her spatial teleportation abilities, the group could vanish in the blink of an eye, reappearing miles away in moments. It made tracking them nearly impossible for anyone not gifted with clairvoyance.
And that challenge now lay squarely in front of James.
Fortunately, he'd thought ahead and left behind a comm device synced specifically to Polaris. Without it, locating her and the rest of the team would've been a shot in the dark.
After establishing contact, James learned that Polaris and the others had taken refuge in an old fallout shelter in a southern town. It had once been designed for wartime emergencies, but was now abandoned and forgotten.
While not terribly far, reaching it on foot was near impossible—especially with the current state of the city. Driving there in something flashy would be asking for trouble, and James wasn't in any shape to sprint across rooftops like the old days. So he decided to hunker down and wait for Blink to come retrieve him.
All he needed to do was transmit his current location, and Blink could warp directly to him.
This plan wasn't just about regrouping more efficiently. It was also about trust. Given the paranoia and chaos, no one could be sure who had been compromised. For all Polaris knew, James could've been captured and forced to bait them into a trap.
Letting Blink scout him out from a safe distance before initiating contact was the only smart move—for everyone.
Pulling some jerky from his bag, James chewed slowly, trying to regain a bit of energy.
Ever since the adamantium in his body had begun to corrode and poison him, even short bursts of exertion left him winded. The sharp decline in stamina was a constant reminder that the clock was ticking.
He leaned back against the wall, letting the brief moment of calm settle over him—until a faint rustling sound caught his attention.
Frowning, James lowered his head and narrowed his eyes toward the source of the noise. What he saw made his brow furrow in disbelief.
Under the faint, flickering moonlight, a trail of ants was moving slowly across the ground—not unusual, except they were carrying something.
A small USB drive.
And they were dragging it right toward him.
Years of combat-honed instincts kicked in—James was on his feet in an instant.
His ears perked up, listening intently for any disturbance, while his nose twitched slightly, sniffing the air for any unfamiliar scents. But no matter how sharp his senses, there was nothing—no sound, no scent, no movement.
That only made him more suspicious.
Narrowing his eyes, James turned his attention back to the USB drive.
He stepped closer, watching the ants still struggling to drag the device that was clearly far too large and heavy for them. Curious, James crouched and picked it up.
The moment he did, the ants scattered in every direction—disoriented and purposeless, as if whatever was guiding them had suddenly been severed. Within seconds, they disappeared into the cracks of the pavement.
James examined the USB in his hand. As far as he could tell, it was a standard storage drive—no explosives, no bugs, no hidden camera.
"What the hell is this?"
His lips were dry. He licked them and frowned, glancing around the empty street again. Still nothing.
He stood there for a moment before turning back toward his car.
To avoid drawing attention from the street gangs and looters, he'd parked it in a secluded corner, nearly abandoned it altogether. But this strange development with the USB had brought him back to it.
Once inside, he shut the door and inserted the USB into the car's onboard system.
A message flashed on the screen: "External device detected."
James pulled on his reading glasses, tapped the display gently with a rough finger, and soon a video file began to play before his eyes.
(...Brought to you by NovaCorp Broadcasting: America's Latest News...)
(...WANTED: Hulk declared fugitive; Captain America teams up with the Black Knight to expose foreign espionage...)
James's pupils constricted. His expression grew serious.
(...Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver make a surprise appearance with the X-Men—this marks their second official meeting...)
(...A historic moment: King T'Chaka of Wakanda addresses the United Nations during his first diplomatic visit to the U.S...)
"What the hell...?"
(...Iron Man delivers urgent message: Hydra's schemes will be dismantled piece by piece—the Avengers will tear them down...)
James's face darkened.
"The Avengers..."
He muttered, his voice low and grim.
"What the hell is that supposed to be?!"
......
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