Ignoring Butcher's displeasure, Kevin pondered for a moment and asked Mallory, "Who is the person you're holding?"
He has no name, he calls himself 'Big.'
"Big..."
"That's what he calls himself, and in our intelligence files, he is indeed referred to as that. But what surprised us most wasn't his identity, nor what he did, but the 'difference' about him."
Mallory leaned forward, adopting a serious posture, and said to Kevin, "He's a Supe from Red River Institute. He, along with a Supe codenamed 'Ghost' and some other abandoned Supe children, sought revenge on the parents who had abandoned them.
Their revenge was very successful. Except for Ghost's mother, who survived, all the other parents were killed by them.
If the story ended there, it would have been a decent ending. The parents who abandoned them received their just punishment, and they fulfilled their wishes."
"I guess you're going to say 'but.'"
"Yes, but Vought dispatched Homelander, who killed all the Supe children involved in that revenge except for Ghost."
Mallory recounted the fate of those Red River 'Avengers' in this world, which was their original ending.
However, the matter clearly wasn't over yet.
Mallory continued, "As you heard, normally everyone should have died, but surprisingly, 'Big,' who should have died in that Vought encirclement, is still alive and was found and detained by us.
This is very strange, isn't it? But there's something even stranger.
When we asked him about what he had done and where his companions were, he showed considerable shock, because he said..."
Mallory paused here, repeating Big's words verbatim.
"'I haven't done anything yet.'"
If there were no such thing as parallel worlds, Mallory's words would only be chilling.
The Big who should have died is alive, and he doesn't remember at all the events in which he participated and definitively killed their parents.
What kind of supernatural event is this?
But Butcher understood at this point: "This 'Big,' is he the Big from a parallel world?"
Mallory replied, "Previously, we didn't know his identity. We just thought there was something wrong with his head, after all, his experience was the same as this world's Big's, except for the matter of killing his parents, other aspects were almost identical.
We wouldn't think in terms of parallel worlds; we would only think that they were spared by Vought for some reason and then accidentally escaped."
Butcher scoffed at this, "That's quite 'accidental.'"
Mallory glanced at him, ignored him, and continued speaking to Kevin, "But now, you've appeared, so I suspect he isn't our world's Big. He's your world's Big, and the person you're looking for should be him... or...
Them."
Mallory might not know what happened to Big and his companions in the other world.
But at least she understood that Kevin's request for Butcher to find people related to Ghost was definitely not without purpose.
At least among Big and his companions, there must be a Supe who can transport them to this universe.
This is also why Mallory is worried about the existence of another universe.
From Butcher's words, Mallory now knows of at least three entities that can come to this universe.
One is the alternate-world counterpart of the young man beside Butcher.
One is Vought CEO from the alternate world, Kevin, standing before her.
Finally, there is the mysterious Supe who transported Big to this world.
Three Supes capable of traversing worlds might not seem like many in terms of numbers, but for Mallory, considering parallel universes, this number is already quite large.
Where there's one, there's two; where there's two, there's three; and where there's three, it represents countless.
If the other world has mastered the power to freely traverse parallel universes, then Mallory's worries would certainly not be superfluous.
Mallory observed Kevin's expression.
Kevin raised a hand to stroke the stubble on his lip, thought for two seconds, and asked, "Then your so-called sincerity must be to let me meet that Big?"
"Yes, but I also hope, Mr. Kevin, that you can make a commitment that you will definitely help us deal with Vought."
"To be honest, Ms. Mallory, this small 'sincerity' isn't worth my effort."
Kevin did have a mind to deal with Vought. Creating a Super Villains alliance and acting as Super Villains in this world, to contend with Vought, was also a way to deal with them.
But that doesn't mean Kevin would readily agree to a deal with the CIA.
One thing is one thing; Kevin didn't want the CIA to think he was an easy person to deal with.
No matter what world, politicians are a bunch of shameless scoundrels. If you dare show weakness in front of them, they'll dare to take a bite out of you.
Kevin wouldn't let go of the hawk until he saw the rabbit, and Mallory was not an easy person to deal with either.
After hearing Kevin's words, her lips also curved upwards: "Perhaps the sincerity isn't enough, but truthfully, I don't fully trust your identity as Vought CEO from another world."
"Reasonable."
Kevin raised an eyebrow, agreeing with what Mallory said.
From beginning to end, Kevin had no evidence of being Vought CEO. Whether it was Hughie from his world, or Kevin himself, they only spoke about it verbally.
And even if Kevin's identity as a visitor from a parallel world was confirmed, the things he said couldn't be taken as evidence.
No one has been to another world, nor do they know what the situation is like there.
Kevin could say he was Vought CEO; he could even say he was Homelander, or some king of that world.
Anyway, no one has the ability to go to another world to verify.
Verbal statements cannot be used as evidence; that's what Mallory was trying to convey.
Since she offered sincerity, Kevin should at least offer corresponding sincerity.
This is cooperation, a transaction, not a one-sided coercion. There must be give and take.
Mallory then said, "So, why don't we both take a step back? I'll take you to Big, and you can ask what you want to know, but you also have to give us some intelligence.
I don't care whether you're Vought CEO or not; as long as the intelligence is accurate, we can cooperate long-term in the future."
Identity was no longer important; what was important was intelligence related to Vought.
Mallory was very open-minded and very intelligent.
Kevin smiled and clapped his hands lightly, "It's truly you, still so astute. Alright, as long as you can fulfill my request, then I'm not unwilling to give you intelligence about Vought."
"Then... pleasant transaction?"
"I need to see Big before I can say 'pleasant transaction.'"
"Understood, I can arrange it for you immediately. But I also hope that after you meet Big, I can also get what I want to know."
"Don't worry, as long as it's intelligence related to Vought, you can ask anything you want then. Of course, only one question."
"Deal?"
"Deal."
Mallory's hand and Kevin's hand clasped together, and both smiled knowingly.
Butcher, seeing this scene from the side, rolled his eyes in disgust and grumbled, "Whether they're politicians or capitalists, negotiating terms is always equally nauseating."
It seemed he couldn't stand their hypocrisy anymore.
...
The place the CIA arranged for Big was in a prison for Supes.
Although most Supes are Superheroes, or employees of Vought.
However, a small number of Supes abused their superpowers to commit crimes.
Many of them would be dealt with by Superheroes, but no matter how hard Superheroes worked, they couldn't guarantee they would eliminate every Supe who opposed them.
And those Supe criminals who weren't dealt with would be sent to prison for centralized incarceration.
Of course, unlike the 'Super Villains' currently hyped by Vought, the superpowers of these Supes are either so weak that they're almost like ordinary people, or they have extremely strong side effects.
For example...
Big.
Strictly speaking, Big's ability is not weak.
He is nearly three meters tall, with a tough body and great strength, capable of easily crushing a person's head.
This world's Big's parents were killed by him personally using his hands to make them 'collide' and crack each other's heads open.
This is enough to prove that Big's superpower is formidable.
But the side effect is that his body cannot revert to normal; he can only maintain his giant size, and the food he consumes daily is more than an ordinary family can afford.
Not to mention the daily waste.
If the CIA hadn't wanted to figure out why Big, who should have died, was still alive, they probably would have sent Big to Vought for research long ago.
Even so, the CIA couldn't bear not being able to obtain intelligence from him. If Mallory hadn't brought Kevin this time, they probably would have really dealt with Big.
Through Mallory's connections, Kevin arrived at this prison. In a specially designed metal room, Kevin met him.
Before entering the room, Mallory said to Kevin, "Because he is still very important 'evidence' for the CIA, your conversation will be monitored and recorded. However... since we are partners, right?
I'll give you three minutes of blank time. Whatever you say to him during those three minutes, I won't record. As for after three minutes... you know."
"Three minutes is enough."
Kevin nodded, expressing his gratitude to Mallory.
Although Kevin didn't care about being monitored and recorded, since she showed goodwill, Kevin wouldn't give her the cold shoulder.
Confirming Kevin was ready, Mallory winked at a nearby CIA member, signaling her to take the irrelevant personnel away.
Then Mallory and Butcher walked to the monitoring room, looking into the interrogation room through the one-way transparent glass.
Inside the interrogation room, Big, wearing an orange jumpsuit, sat awkwardly on a chair that was too small for him.
Kevin happened to push the door open at that moment.
And upon seeing Kevin, Big's eyes immediately lit up: "Deep, you're Deep...!"
"Hmm? You know me?"
"Of... of course! I... I'm your... fan... used to be..."
Big stammered.
His voice was slow, sounding not very intelligent. Kevin inadvertently glanced at the one-way glass nearby, then sat up straight and said to Big, "I'm happy to meet a fan who likes me, but Big, since you're my fan, you should know what kind of person I used to be."
"You're a Superhero... a real... Superhero... you saved... Flight 37... very powerful...!"
"Then do you think, as a Superhero, I would like a fan who would kill his own parents?"
Kevin asked softly.
His tone was very flat, as flat as if he were saying, 'What should we eat tonight?'
But these flat words rendered Big speechless.