A punch thrown with full, furious force!
The boy was absolutely certain that this strike would connect perfectly. The man before him had appeared in an odd way, yes, but clearly didn't possess his kind of speed.
And in the world of speed, the boy's confidence was absolute.
Boom!
His fist connected with Arthur's head, exactly as expected. The man didn't even react, taking the blow squarely.
A confident, satisfied smile began to spread across the boy's face… when suddenly, a voice reached his ears, a beat too late:
"Don't!"
Don't?
Why don't?
A flicker of confusion flashed through the boy's mind, right before he felt a heavy hand clamp down on the back of his neck!
He tried to break free, twisting and leveraging his incredible speed, but failed instantly.
Then came a calm, almost casual voice from directly behind him:
"That really hurt. If this is your idea of a humorous greeting, I'm afraid I don't quite share your sense of humor."
The person who had been in front of him was now gone. The boy twisted his neck to look back and saw a black-masked face right behind him.
The mask's mouth was curved in a strange, painted smile.
"But I'm not particularly angry," Arthur continued, his tone faintly amused. "Such energy… quite the spirited youngster."
He loosened his grip, his hand resting lightly, but firmly, on the boy's shoulder.
"I wonder, do we have a chance to talk properly?"
The moment he finished speaking, both the boy and the girl vanished from Arthur's grasp and vision.
Talk?
No need.
The boy had no intention of speaking with someone like that.
Someone who had entered a fortress silently, taken a high-speed punch to the head without flinching, and still managed to grab him without a sound?
That kind of person wasn't one you "talked" to.
As he came to a sudden halt a few meters away, the boy glanced at the girl.
"That guy just now…"
"Hmm. Referring to someone as 'that guy' isn't exactly polite, you know."
The hated voice spoke again, right behind him.
The boy's face twisted in shock and disbelief. The girl's expression, meanwhile, grew sharp and tense, her eyes glowing. They both spun around, and there Arthur was again, appearing silently behind them, the faint, maddening smile still audible in his tone.
"Whether or not you two want to talk, I'm afraid I can't just let you go. This place is meant to stay quiet, and I'd rather not alert anyone… especially that Baron."
Neither of them spoke. Their pupils contracted as they exchanged a quick, desperate glance, and the next instant, the boy vanished into a high-speed blur.
Crimson, raw light began to flicker and bloom between the girl's hands.
But in that very moment, her target disappeared, and the boy's body froze mid-step, caught as Arthur's hand landed squarely on his shoulder again, halting his momentum instantly.
A light, expert tap to the neck, and the boy vanished completely, unconscious.
"What did you do to him?!"
The girl's pupils contracted further, red, chaotic energy flickering wildly around her hands and shoulders, radiating raw fear and anger.
"Interesting… and powerful energy," Arthur said, studying her with mild curiosity, unfazed by the threat. "But clearly, you're not yet in full control of it. Don't worry, he's fine. You'll be fine too. As long as you don't do anything rash. Otherwise, you'll only end up hurting yourself."
"You have no idea what pain really means!"
Her hands shot forward, and a massive surge of raw, crimson energy roared toward Arthur, a visible wave of telekinetic force.
Arthur calmly raised one hand.
"Stop."
The crimson energy froze midair before him, a terrifying wave of power suspended inches from his mask. He made a gentle sweeping motion, and the power dispersed into nothingness, vanishing as though it had never been there, leaving no trace.
"I once had a very good teacher," Arthur said calmly, walking forward slowly. "She taught me a great deal about the nature of energy and how to control it. Compared to her lessons, your current use of power is… far too rough."
Arthur continued, his voice softer, but carrying immense authority, "The Mind Stone may have granted you special abilities, but it clearly didn't take responsibility for teaching you how to use them properly."
The girl's expression changed instantly to raw terror, and then, in the blink of an eye, Arthur was gone. She couldn't sense him at all. Worse, she suddenly realized she couldn't move her own body anymore. Her consciousness began sinking into an impossible silence.
After sending the Scarlet Witch into the Disassembler Space, Arthur rubbed his face lightly and murmured,
"I had planned to find you two earlier, but various… circumstances got in the way. Now that we've finally met, it's best to leave this place. It's not exactly pleasant here."
He paused, then smiled faintly beneath the mask.
"I hope you'll like your new environment. And while you're there… I hope you'll learn how to listen when someone is speaking."
Arthur opened his communicator and connected to Tony.
"I've taken care of two major problems for you."
"I believe you," Tony replied, a familiar hint of skepticism in his voice. "We've already met up with Cap and Hawkeye, we're on our way now. If there's anything else we should know, say it."
"Nothing much," Arthur said, his tone casual. "With your abilities, if you can't tear a place like this apart, Hydra would've conquered Earth long ago."
"To be fair, they almost did. More than once."
"And if they ever succeed," Arthur replied evenly, the underlying threat clear, "then that would be our failure."
With that, he ended the transmission, then lightly patted his head, momentarily forgetting his immense power.
"Ah… I forgot to tell them there are two surprises waiting back at Camp Lehigh. Oh well, they'll find out soon enough."
By now, the Eye of Horus had completely mapped the structure of the entire facility. With Arthur's current power, both its range and precision had grown immensely, a mere base like this was hardly a challenge anymore.
In the instant his form vanished, Arthur reappeared elsewhere, right in front of the magic staff.
It looked pitiful, bound tightly, surrounded by countless machines constantly analyzing, scanning, and reading its energy.
Around it, dozens of scientists were working tirelessly, oblivious to the silent invasion.
Watching their hard work, Arthur almost felt a touch of sympathy.
If these people were devoting their effort for the sake of humanity's future, each of them could have been called a hero.
Unfortunately, their true goal was nothing more than personal, dark ambition.
"It's been a while," Arthur said softly to the artifact. "Come with me."
He extended his hand, effortlessly pierced through layers of containment fields and energy barriers, and seized Loki's magic staff.
Instantly, alarms blared throughout the base! Flames and explosions erupted in unison, every scientist on site was jolted into frantic panic.
And when they looked toward the containment chamber… the object of all their research had vanished!
"Enemy attack!!!"
The cries and alarms echoed as chaos swept through the entire entire Hydra facility.
Meanwhile, high above the darkening Sokovian sky, Arthur spread his Wings of the Raven God, gazing down upon the battle now unfolding below, the Avengers Alliance clashing head-on with Hydra's scattered forces.