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The graveyard north of Fort Stockton.
Hawk stood motionless, his senses locked on the approaching presences—the Water Demon, and the thick, sulfurous stench of Hell that clung to its companion.
"Whoosh!"
"Whoosh!"
Two figures materialized at the cemetery gates—a man in a tailored suit, his expression dark and brooding, and beside him, a disheveled figure whose long hair dripped water as if he'd just crawled out of a storm.
Blackheart.
And Wallow, the Water Demon.
Their eyes met.
Blackheart's pupils contracted the instant his gaze landed on Hawk. He could feel it—the raw, overwhelming power radiating from this stranger.
"Who the fuck are you??"
His voice barely left his mouth.
Wallow didn't hesitate. The Water Demon's instincts screamed danger. Without a word, without even a backward glance, he turned and ran.
It wasn't cowardice.
It was survival!
Unlike Blackheart, who could only sense Hawk's strength, Wallow felt something far more specific—the unmistakable presence of the other three Elemental Demons.
Wind. Earth. Fire.
All three were here. On him. In him.
The four foundational elements shared a mystical bond. Wallow's senses were sharper than Blackheart's. And what he sensed made his blood run cold.
There was only one explanation for why the essence of his three brothers would be emanating from a single person.
This man had killed them. Absorbed them. Taken their power for his own.
And Wallow had just walked right into his trap.
Panic flooded through him. Without thinking, he bolted.
His sudden escape left Blackheart stunned.
Hawk, too, blinked in surprise. Then, slowly, a grin spread across his face.
The next second—
He vanished.
WHOOSH!
Wallow ran like his life depended on it—because it did. His legs pumped furiously, his mind screaming at him.
'Damn it. Damn it. Damn it!'
Why was there no water here??
This wasteland was a desert. Bone dry. If he could just find a puddle—hell, even a damp patch of dirt—he could escape.
But there was nothing.
And then—
BAM!
Wallow's eyes went wide. He skidded to a halt, staring at the empty air in front of him. The space rippled, and an instant later, Hawk stepped through it like he was walking through a curtain.
Wallow's heart stopped.
He tried to brake, but momentum carried him forward.
THUD!
Hawk's right hand shot out. His fingers closed around Wallow's skull like a vice.
The Water Demon's body jerked to a stop, caught mid-stride.
Wallow's eyes rolled up, meeting Hawk's gaze. He opened his mouth to speak—
But it was too late.
Behind Hawk, the spectral form of the Phoenix erupted into existence, wreathed in crimson flames.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!"
A scream tore from Wallow's throat.
The Phoenix Fire surged. Hawk's hand blazed with power, and through the ghostly talons of the Phoenix, he began to drain the Water Demon's essence.
Wallow thrashed. His body convulsed. Water-based attacks shot out in every direction, desperate and wild, but they evaporated the instant they touched the flames.
One breath.
Two breaths.
In the span of a heartbeat, Wallow began to wither. His form shrank, his presence dimming as the water element was torn from his very being and drawn into Hawk's Cosmo.
SPLAT!
With a sound like a bursting water balloon, Wallow exploded. His body dissolved into a foul-smelling puddle that splashed across the dry earth.
.....
And in that instant, within Hawk's inner universe, everything changed.
The four foundational elements—Wind, Earth, Fire, and Water—were now complete.
RUMBLE!
The addition of water triggered a cataclysm.
The red-hot core at the center of his Cosmo, which had been burning like a miniature sun, suddenly cooled. In the blink of an eye, it solidified into the molten heart of a world.
Around it, the countless fragments of shattered meteorites continued their endless rotation, drawn together by the four elements. They began to coalesce, to merge, to form the foundation of something greater.
A WORLD.
But—
It would take time.
Creating a world wasn't something that could be done in an instant. Dimensions could be born overnight, but true worlds required patience.
Like Blackheart and the Elemental Demons had planned—they wanted a new dimension.
Hawk wanted a new world.
The difference was simple.
They had the four elements. But they lacked the core—Aether.
Without Aether, the most they could create was a pocket dimension, not a true material world.
But Hawk had it.
He had Aether. He had the four elements. And now, even though his Cosmo was still barren and raw, given enough time, it would flourish.
Of course—
Time could be cheated.
Cheating was a slippery slope. You do it once, you'll do it a thousand times.
Hawk had already used the Reality Stone to manifest his Silver Saint power ahead of schedule. What was one more shortcut?
The Time Stone.
If he could borrow it from the Sorcerer Supreme and accelerate the flow of time within his Cosmo, the process could be sped up exponentially.
Whether or not the Ancient One would lend it to him was another question. But it was worth a shot.
After all, he was only using it on his own inner universe, not on the real world. The risk should be minimal.
Hawk let his consciousness linger for a moment longer, watching the slow formation of his newborn world. Then he opened his eyes.
Four elements acquired.
Now he just needed one more thing.
The Laws of Life and Death...
And for that, he needed Blackheart!
Hawk didn't possess the authority over Life and Death. At least, not until his Cosmo fully manifested into a parallel universe. Until then, he couldn't claim that power.
But—
He didn't have it. Blackheart did. So, he'd just take it. He'd already absorbed Four Demons. What was one more?
Most importantly—
Mephisto had asked him to deal with his rebellious son. This was just him fulfilling his end of the bargain.
.....
Hawk's crimson-gold eyes locked onto Blackheart. A cold smile curled at the corner of his lips.
"Blackheart, right?"
"Who the hell are you??" Blackheart demanded, his voice tight with barely restrained fury.
He'd just watched Hawk obliterate Wallow in seconds. The fear he felt was real, but he refused to show it.
Hawk didn't answer right away. When he did, his voice was calm.
"A friend of your old man."
"MEPHISTO!" Blackheart's face twisted.
'What a rebellious son. Calling his father by his first name.'
Hawk raised an eyebrow, his tone casual.
"Your old man came to New York yesterday. Told me if I stopped his wayward son from building a new Hell, he'd give me back my sister's soul."
Blackheart froze for a second. Then, he threw his head back and laughed.
"HE'S LYING! HE'S PLAYING YOU FOR A FOOL!"
"Is he?"
"You don't understand him. I DO. Any soul that enters Hell is his. He'll never let one go."
Blackheart's voice was laced with venom as he tried to sow doubt. He took a breath, then his tone shifted, becoming almost conspiratorial.
"But I'm different. Give me the four elements. Give me the Contract of San Venganza. We can create a new Hell together. And when it's built, I'll release your sister's soul myself."
Hawk's eyes flickered, as if he were considering it.
Seeing the hesitation, Blackheart pressed on.
"You got the contract from Carter Slade, didn't you? Do you know how Mephisto tricked him?"
Blackheart recounted the story—how Carter Slade had been a Texas Ranger, how his wife had been dying, how Mephisto had promised to heal her. And how, the very next day, she'd died in an accident.
"It was the same with Johnny Blaze. Mephisto cured his father, then killed him the next day."
Blackheart's voice was grave.
"You can't trust him. HE'S A LIAR. A DECEIVER. He'll promise you anything, and then laugh as you suffer. Work with him, and you'll get nothing but pain."
Hawk sat in silence, his expression unreadable.
After a long moment, he looked up.
"So, if I work with you, you can bring my sister back?"
"Yes." Blackheart's face was deadly serious. "Believe me. And if you do, we can share the new Hell. Half for me, half for you. Together, we'll rule."
'The second the Hell is built, you're the first one I'm killing.'
Blackheart thought to himself, even as he forced a warm, sincere smile onto his face.
Hawk seemed to waver. He took a deep breath.
"Alright. Compared to Mephisto, I think I'd rather trust you. At the very least, we'd be partners."
"Exactly." Blackheart's smile widened.
Hawk nodded. Then, with his left hand, he produced the Contract of San Venganza. He took a few steps forward, closing the distance between them, and extended the scroll.
Blackheart's eyes lit up. He reached for it.
And in that instant—
The Phoenix appeared.
CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!
The Bronze Phoenix Armor, which Hawk had recently reforged for his sparring matches with Thor on Mars, materialized in a flash of golden light. Piece by piece, it snapped into place, covering his body at supersonic speed.
The helmet locked down over his face.
And Hawk's right hand, now clad in the armored gauntlet, shot forward.
His fingers pressed against Blackheart's forehead.
"Phoenix—"
"—Illusion Demon Fist!!"
"…"
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