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Chapter 45: Thor, Hear Me Out!
🕑 Added 2025-02-01 16:01:32 +0000 UTCThe next day, major media outlets worldwide were in a frenzy, reporting on what had transpired in New Mexico.
If it had just been Thor failing to lift Mjolnir, it wouldn't have been that big of a deal—certainly not enough to cause a global sensation.
But then Kaecilius single-handedly fought Loki, Magneto stepped onto the battlefield for a solo duel, and Duncan led an entire force into battle, ultimately lifting Mjolnir and unleashing a wild display of divine power, triggering massive weather disturbances.
There was no way to keep this under wraps.
Even a fool could tell that something monumental had happened in New Mexico—an event involving immensely powerful superhumans engaged in intense combat.
By now, anyone with access to information had a rough idea of what had occurred. With Magneto himself stepping in and making such a spectacle, the rumors about Thor descending to Earth were all but confirmed.
Even scattered intel about the Eternals and mutant offshoots had started circulating in whispers.
"So, that's how it is. There's no way to suppress this news anymore."
Coulson, looking utterly exhausted and wrapped in bandages, sighed. "That special serum you just injected me with—there won't be any side effects, right?"
"Given the situation at the time, the fact that you made it back alive is already a miracle. I'd prepared myself for losing you. So, don't worry about the serum. Even though it's only a prototype and only accelerates recovery, it'll heal your wrecked body just fine."
Fury stood with his hands behind his back, gazing out the window. Sunlight bathed his figure, but it did nothing to dispel the dark storm cloud looming over his face.
Everyone knew that from this moment on, the world was heading in a new direction. The terrifying power of superhumans could no longer be concealed.
As for suppressing the news like in the past… how exactly was he supposed to do that this time?
Tell people it was just an anomalous global weather event?
An anomaly so bizarre that all the extreme weather conditions, as if they had grown legs, traveled across thousands of kilometers just to break out in New Mexico?
"I have a bad feeling, Coulson. If we try to give the public a straight-faced explanation, they'll take it as a blatant insult." Fury's tone was grim.
Coulson understood immediately. "Because we'd be insulting their intelligence. So, we flood the channels with fake news—overwhelming amounts of garbage information to drown out the truth. At the very least, we can dilute the impact of this event."
"That's our only option." Fury sighed. "But I'm worried about Duncan. That dangerous bastard! Motherfucker! He's the biggest winner in this whole mess!"
Fury was normally a composed man, but the thought of the mastermind behind this chaos made it hard to keep his temper in check.
He had spent an entire day and night poring over Duncan's file, flipping through it over and over, but still couldn't wrap his head around him.
Who the hell was this guy? Why was he so damn good at stirring things up?
"Boss, instead of focusing on his ambition, maybe we should figure something else out first." Coulson said. "Our intel suggests that he always seems to know a lot of hidden information. Maybe that's how he attracted Magneto, who was investigating ancient mutant history, and that's what set everything in motion."
Their psychological profile on Duncan had a new conclusion:
Duncan was a master at seizing opportunities. Beneath his seemingly lazy demeanor lay an extraordinary sharpness. He could always take whatever chips he had on hand and assemble them—like building blocks—into the most advantageous combination possible.
The new report was fresh off the press. It might be useful in the future.
But for now, it was completely useless.
It only made Fury even angrier. His breathing grew heavy, his chest rising and falling. He was absolutely livid.
"The way you're acting makes me suspect you've been parasitized by an alien yourself." Coulson's expression turned serious. "I suggest you get an X-ray scan, just in case."
Fury shot Coulson a sharp glance. He knew the senior agent wasn't entirely joking. If he had said it, it meant he truly suspected something.
"I will. Not just me—everyone in S.H.I.E.L.D. needs to undergo regular scans." Fury rubbed his temples.
Parasitism…
That reminded him of something else—something insane that Coulson had mentioned about Duncan.
The man had supposedly implanted a freshly parasitized Xenomorph embryo into his own body… to gain a portion of Thor's genetic traits?
And then, just like that, he had lifted Mjolnir?
Honestly, if Coulson weren't such a reliable agent… and if all the surveillance footage hadn't been instantly wiped out by Magneto's magnetic field… Fury would have thought he was drunk.
Because this was just too damn ridiculous.
Even if Duncan had used magic to pull it off—hell, even if he had sacrificed his own Xenomorphs to some interdimensional demon to make it happen—Fury would have found that easier to accept.
"The Xenomorphs are more valuable than we ever imagined." Coulson said, his tone measured.
"That theory we've been speculating about? We can finally confirm it: a newly parasitized embryo can be surgically removed, and the host has a high chance of survival."
Fury narrowed his eyes. "And what about the one inside Duncan? He likely used its genetic material to gain superpowers, but somehow, he managed to extract it after it had been inside him for a long time and swapped it with the one inside Thor?"
"Maybe he can control its growth." Coulson speculated. "But once the embryo bursts from the chest, the host is almost certainly doomed. The Xenomorph consolidates all the best genetic material from the host before emerging. Based on our analysis of Abomination's corpse, that seems to be the most probable outcome."
"Even a superhuman's healing factor wouldn't work against that…" Fury's face darkened even further.
If this was true, then Xenomorphs were essentially the ultimate counter to all superhumans.
But beneath his frustration, his eyes burned with an intense, covetous gleam.
He loathed Duncan.
He loathed himself even more—for not realizing the Xenomorphs' potential sooner, for not acting before Duncan did.
But what he hated most was that he wasn't Duncan—the one in control of this terrifying species.
That was about to change.
Fury finally turned away from the window. "But there's another possibility."
"The Xenomorph takes the host's best genes when it bursts. But here's the question—how does the host's body determine whether the emerging Xenomorph is part of itself or not? If it recognizes it as part of itself, then of course the healing factor wouldn't work. Self-regeneration can't just conjure an entirely new set of organs out of thin air."
If that weren't the case, then a healing factor would be able to regenerate a whole second heart, brain, or even an entire body from a minor wound.
But what if a host could consciously manipulate their regeneration—or if an external force could interfere with their genetic process—to "manufacture" a second set of organs to replace the ones stolen by the Xenomorph?
No… there was another problem.
Did a host's healing factor even have that level of adaptability?
Even if it did… would the remaining genetic material be enough to accomplish that?
Fury and Coulson locked eyes.
Coulson's expression was wary. "Boss, you're acting… off. Either you're not actually Nick Fury, or you've been on some insane secret mission I don't know about. Something valuable enough to make you this… excited."
Fury smirked. "Take a guess."
Coulson's eyes narrowed. "I already have an idea… but my gut tells me it's not that simple. Duncan wouldn't leave such an obvious loophole. And the most important thing—the Xenomorph Queen is always by his side."
The two fell into silence.
...
Duncan returned with his spoils of war: Thor, Makkari, and seventeen Deviants.
Of course, he took Tony's plane back.
The cost had been steep. More than half of the Xenomorph forces he brought were wiped out, and he himself suffered multiple serious injuries. In the end, he and Magneto joined forces to wear down Kaecilius, using Thor's life as leverage to temporarily force Loki into retreat.
If there was anything unsatisfactory about the whole ordeal, it was undoubtedly the old man who kept trying to communicate with him.
"…Yes, I understand. Alright. Goodbye. Don't bother me again."
"Peace? Yes, peace forever. I love peace. I will uphold peace with my actions…"
The X-Men arrived late—too late to join the battle—but Professor X was as annoying as ever. His ability to project telepathic communication across the entire globe was even more aggravating.
The thought of Professor X using Cerebro to amplify his powers, potentially carrying out a worldwide massacre by the millions, made Duncan's head ache.
The old man was terrifying. And now, he had his sights set on him, persistently attempting to establish contact, which was beyond frustrating.
"He's finally gone." Duncan carefully scanned his surroundings, confirming that Xavier's telepathic presence had vanished.
When it came to telepathic connections, Duncan had his own abilities, though they were limited to himself and all Xenomorphs under his control. This, however, granted him a degree of resistance against Xavier's mind control. He could even mobilize the consciousness of all Xenomorphs to construct a mental network, collectively resisting any form of psychic intrusion.
But for now, his network was not strong enough to withstand Professor X.
"After all, he's one of the two poles of the mutant world. He's been at odds with Erik for most of his life," Raven remarked, watching Duncan closely.
"Why are you looking at me like that?"
"You did it on purpose. You used Erik again."
"You call that 'using' him? That was a transaction. Erik got everything he wanted about the Deviants. Without me, how else would he have learned about them? The information I provided was invaluable for his next steps. The fact that he left immediately after receiving it proves my point."
Duncan tossed Mjolnir from his left hand to his right, then back again.
Lightning crackled across the hammer's surface, yet not a single spark harmed him.
Raven shifted her gaze, staring at the hammer with an incredulous expression. The whole situation was absurd—Duncan, a human, had gone on a mission and returned as a "god"?
"The real Thor is still alive?" She gestured toward the unconscious deity on the ground.
"Your expression is amusing. It makes me feel like some kind of counterfeit. And yet… I can sense your newfound respect for me. What an honor. At least it means my efforts have been worthwhile."
Duncan stood before his home's heavy iron doors, which were riddled with bullet holes and one massive breach from heavy weaponry. Lifting his gaze, he surveyed the building's battered exterior before glancing at the corpses strewn outside.
Tsk. In just a few hours of his absence, some fools had come knocking.
"The attackers were highly trained. It's impossible to determine exactly who they belong to, but they were extremely familiar with the building's structural layout. It could be S.H.I.E.L.D.," Raven assessed.
"You think Blade tipped them off? Or maybe they already had blueprints of the place."
Duncan wasn't particularly concerned. Plenty of people were after him, but very few had the guts to organize and deploy a heavily armed strike force in such a short time.
"I'm just glad you two survived." Duncan looked toward Elektra, who was lying on the floor, missing an entire leg, and gave her a nod of approval.
"Boss, you need to give me a raise. Even when I worked for the Hand, I was never assigned to go toe-to-toe with a heavily armed squad." Elektra grumbled as she worked to regenerate her severed limb.
She even held up her broken blade, looking both aggrieved and proud.
In response, Duncan expressed his sincere condolences—before dismissing her injuries as nothing more than minor inconveniences. He then solemnly promised, "Next time, for sure."
"Just like you instructed, we let them steal a Xenomorph egg. I still don't get what you're trying to do." Elektra was puzzled.
"I'm expanding the army. Those guys already have access to Xenomorph blood. I've fought vampires countless times, and the Xenomorph blood spilled during battles has already spread across New York's vampire hideouts. If they really wanted samples, they wouldn't have had a hard time getting them. I'm just accelerating the process."
Duncan muttered something unintelligible before shifting his attention to Thor.
The gaping wound in Thor's chest had finally stopped bleeding. His resilience as a son of the All-Father was truly absurd.
Of course, it also helped that Duncan had extracted the Xenomorph from Thor's body before it could fully develop. Had the creature completed its gestation, there was a small chance Thor would have died—though that ultimately depended on Odin's intervention.
Most likely, some external force would step in and use magic or other means to restore Thor's body.
"Elektra, patch him up. I already contacted Tony Stark—he's sending a team of doctors. It's not every day you get a chance to study the offspring of a god, and he's very interested." Duncan gave the order casually.
He couldn't afford to let Thor die. As long as the Asgardian had even a single breath left, it was fine. But if he actually died, it would become a major incident.
No one knew how Odin would react, and Loki, who had already fled, would likely go berserk as well.
Duncan then selected a Xenomorph egg and implanted it in Makkari, ensuring that his forces would eventually have a speedster capable of rapid troop deployment.
Tony's efficiency was, as always, impressive. Within moments, a helicopter arrived, delivering several doctors and state-of-the-art medical equipment.
"So this is the so-called Thor from the internet?"
"How did he end up like this? Some of his internal organs are missing small portions, but the rest of his body's functionality is still vastly superior to a human's!"
"Mr. Duncan, we've even reattached his severed hand. We've done everything we can, but for some reason, he just won't wake up," one of the doctors reported.
"Don't worry—I have a way."
Duncan lifted Mjolnir and placed it against Thor's chest.
BOOM!
A bolt of lightning struck Thor.
The God of Thunder's body instantly absorbed the energy.
"Odin's son, you weren't fully taken over by my power. So, there's no need for us to fight for the sake of pride. Instead, we should talk. I imagine you have a lot you'd like to say to me."
Duncan's voice was calm as he continued, "Why don't we start with this—why did Odin exile you to Earth? Why did you lose your godhood? Perhaps… you should hear me out."
Comments
True_Mystic
At this point Duncan is just a gold medal instigator.
