In the bedroom—
Fresh from a shower, Azuma slipped into pajamas and climbed into bed.
"I wonder which Marvel or DC world I'll end up in this time?"
Azuma was brimming with curiosity.
Closing his eyes, he drifted off in mere seconds.
Instant sleep—pretty great!
In the void, a massive, boundless gate of the comic multiverse slowly creaked open.
Azuma opened his eyes to find himself in this familiar space, but before he could take a good look, the gate sucked him in.
The scene shifted—
Azuma jolted upright on a tattered bed, glancing around.
He was in a rundown, decrepit room. Even the bed beneath him was a mess—shabby and worn, the kind of junk that might sit ignored in a trash heap.
"Where am I?"
The question bubbled up in his mind.
The next second—
A brief burst of information flooded his brain.
Azuma, a pruned individual, currently in some corner of the Void. He'd been here for a long time—how long exactly, unknown.
After all—
Time barely existed as a concept in the Void.
"The Void? I'm a time criminal pruned by the Time Variance Authority?"
Azuma couldn't help but roll his eyes at this setup.
Then he checked the mission achievement conditions for this world.
With terms like "Void" and "Time Variance Authority," it was clear he'd landed in a Marvel-side universe.
Last time was DC—now it's Marvel's turn?
So these two brothers take turns, huh?
Azuma grumbled internally while reviewing the mission requirements.
[Mission Achievement Condition]
[Kill Cassandra Solo!]
Cassandra?
With the help of his super brain, Azuma quickly recalled who that name belonged to.
Bald chick, Cassandra, Professor X's twin sister.
Seriously, how many siblings does Professor X have?
This woman was another time criminal pruned by the TVA, but unlike others, she could leave the Void anytime—she just didn't bother.
Her powers? Telepathy and telekinesis like Professor X, plus levitation, control over living and inanimate objects, and to some extent, energy manipulation through psionic power.
Oh, and she could copy and manipulate other beings' DNA to craft herself a physical body.
In short, she was a multi-tool version of Professor X, with tricks he didn't have.
Strength-wise—
She outclassed him!
And she had almost no weaknesses.
Why "almost"?
Because in the movie, she got shut down by a helmet that blocked psychic powers.
All her fancy abilities seemed to stem from her psychic energy.
Lose that, and everything else went kaput!
What baffled Azuma most—
Cassandra knew about this weakness and still didn't destroy Juggernaut's helmet.
What's that about?
Did she think she was too invincible and wanted to keep a flaw for fun?
Brain glitch much?
Then again—
In the movie, Cassandra's head did seem a little off.
Maybe, like Azuma figured, her screwy brain kept Juggernaut's helmet around for kicks.
"Looks like I'm in the Deadpool & Wolverine world this time."
Now that he knew which world he'd landed in, Azuma got up and left the room.
Opening the door, he realized his "home" was actually one floor of a building—sliced off and dumped here—perched on a small hill.
In the distance stretched an endless plain, with a crooked forest farther off. Turning his head, he saw a barren desert on the other side.
"The Void's environment is pretty unique," Azuma thought.
Most striking—
Scattered everywhere were wrecked buildings, submarines, warships—all junk, strewn about like someone had tossed them aside carelessly.
After taking in the scenery, Azuma glanced down at his outfit.
Classic post-apocalyptic wasteland vibe: a tattered yellow rag draped over him, a grimy gray shirt underneath, and faded khaki pants with no belt—just a rope tied around his waist.
"What's with this refugee getup?"
Azuma didn't like it one bit. He decided to find something decent to wear.
Wearing this out there? Way too off-brand for him.
Since the Void had that monster Alioth, Azuma wasn't sure if it could swallow even his steel body.
Considering Alioth had roamed the Void for eons and might've chomped on folks tougher than him, Azuma opted for a low profile.
So instead of flying, he dashed across the ground at a brisk pace.
Ten minutes later—
He found a house fully pruned into the Void.
Inside, he discovered a wardrobe with plenty of clothes to choose from.
Azuma picked a decently fitting suit.
The options were mostly suits or polo shirts.
He went with the suit over the polos.
A clean light blue suit, paired with a white dress shirt, and polished leather shoes.
Azuma fixed his hair in front of a mirror, nodded at his sharp look, and headed out.
But the second he stepped outside—
He ran smack into a hooded figure walking in.
They locked eyes at the doorway, both freezing in place.
"Buddy, no hostility here. Just scoping out some useful supplies," the hooded guy said.
He flipped off his hood, revealing a face Azuma knew all too well.
"Cap?"
Azuma blurted out.
"Cap? What Cap?" The guy looked around, then pointed at himself. "You mean me? I'm Johnny Storm, not some 'Cap.'"
Okay, not Captain America—it was Johnny Storm, the Human Torch, who got a quick exit in the movie for running his mouth.
Though he did look identical to Cap.
An easy mix-up.
As for the mouth?
Johnny Storm being a loudmouth was par for the course.
Even Cap had that "honey-lipped" nickname, didn't he?
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