"Why are you all staring at me? That thing lunged. Didn't you see it?"
Clint looked around defensively as everyone continued staring at him.
"We saw."
But the group kept staring anyway, making Barton—an elite agent—look like he was about to develop social anxiety.
Before anyone could add anything, the vampire's corpse suddenly burst into flames, burning to ash in seconds.
"Did you silver-plate your arrowheads?" Natasha asked immediately.
"Of course. Otherwise how am I supposed to kill a vampire?"
Barton nodded, perfectly matter-of-fact.
Coulson sighed quietly.
Nick Fury had ordered him to bring a live specimen back.
Now there wasn't even a dead one—just a pile of ash.
He could only scoop up whatever grey residue remained.
Still, they didn't dwell on it. The mission was complete, no one was hurt, and everyone returned home.
Cleanup would be handled by S.H.I.E.L.D.—their specialty.
---
Everyone thought that was the end of it.
But the next morning, Matt called.
"Lucas, Elsa needs our help, and whatever it is, S.H.I.E.L.D. cannot know.
Come to my office alone."
Matt spoke so mysteriously over the phone that Lucas had no idea what was going on.
So he had Skye and Wanda watch the shop, and he headed to Hell's Kitchen alone.
Gwen had reached the end of her break and could only return to school with Peter, but starting next year, she, Peter, and Felicia would all be allowed out for internships.
They wouldn't be stuck on campus anymore.
After seeing their grades, Tony waved his hand generously and arranged for all three to intern at Stark Industries—an opportunity students would kill for.
Peter, however, kept complaining to Lucas that Felicia had been coming home exhausted lately, disappearing early and returning late.
She refused to explain and only told him not to worry, which of course made him worry even more.
---
When Lucas arrived at Matt's firm, Elsa and Frank were already there.
He greeted Karen and then headed straight into Matt's office.
"What's with all the secrecy?"
They all sat together, and Lucas spoke first.
Matt handed him a cup of tea.
"It's better if Elsa explains it. It's… complicated."
Elsa nodded.
"Remember the guardian of the dimensional gate I mentioned? The real reason I came here was to find him.
I've located him.
I need your help to get him out."
"So this is a rescue operation. Matt and Frank can handle that.
Why drag me into it?" Lucas asked.
With Matt and Frank's capabilities, who couldn't they break out?
"Look at this first."
Matt handed him a photograph.
Lucas took a single glance—and immediately looked up sharply.
"You found this place?"
The photo was of a manor.
The same manor the Eye of Agamotto had shown him—the one the Ancient One had pointed out.
"It wasn't me. It was Elsa."
Elsa nodded.
"That manor used to be my home. I came because they're holding a 'gathering'—to determine the next heir of the Bloodstone family.
They're also the ones who captured the guardian of the dimensional gate."
"Wait… the guardian you're talking about—is it the Man-Thing?"
Lucas asked carefully.
Elsa's eyes widened.
Very, very few people even knew of Man-Thing's existence.
She hadn't expected this kid to be familiar with something so obscure.
"That's right. The Man-Thing. They took him.
And the ones responsible are almost certainly my family.
So I'm going back—and I intend to get him out."
Man-Thing—formerly Theodore Sallis.
A scientist, and the only person who successfully improved the Super Soldier Serum after the war.
When people tried to steal his research, he destroyed all his notes and fled with the single remaining vial.
He didn't escape.
His car crashed into a swamp, and with his pursuers closing in, he injected himself with the serum.
He was swallowed by the swamp.
Instead of dying, the serum fused him with the plant matter around him, transforming him into a semi-human, semi-plant creature.
He became the Man-Thing.
His intelligence degraded, but every other physical attribute skyrocketed.
He became immune to corruption and toxins, and developed a terrifying ability:
Any creature that feels fear—if touched by him—bursts into flame.
Lucas only knew the origin story; he'd never seen the actual special.
"So?" Lucas asked.
"So, I want you to come with me to the manor—and help me rescue him."
Elsa proceeded to explain the so-called "gathering."
In truth, it was a twisted inheritance game organized by the family's elders:
Ulysses Bloodstone's widow and the house steward.
Before his death, Ulysses had arranged this "competition" to determine who would inherit the Bloodstone and the estate.
He summoned every Bloodstone relative and notable monster hunter.
Whoever claimed the Bloodstone would inherit everything.
"And these two can't go?" Lucas gestured at Matt and Frank again.
Same question—why not send them?
Elsa shook her head.
"No. They're not monster hunters.
Only monster hunters are allowed entry."
Lucas frowned.
"And how would your manor know who's a monster hunter? Put up a sign? Gatekeeper does interviews?"
Elsa sighed.
"It's the steward. He has a bead that can distinguish normal humans from those connected to magic or the supernatural.
Regular humans aren't allowed inside at all.
So those two can't get through the gate.
Only you can."
Lucas blinked.
Of all the reasons… this one he absolutely hadn't expected.
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