New York in October was dry and cloudless. The sky was clear, the air crisp.

Malrick sat on the open-air balcony, eyes closed, attuned to the cosmic flow through the Space Stone. His cells thrummed under sunlight, drinking in universal energy.

Suddenly he paused, opening his eyes. A beam of golden light emerged from Manhattan and hovered before him. Within it, a familiar figure appeared—gilded hair suspended midair, broad square jaw unmistakable. Carol Danvers, aka Captain Marvel.

He wasn't surprised. With the Skrulls driven off Earth, her return was inevitable.

He observed her silently as she floated, expression unreadable.

After a moment, he spoke. "You here about the Skrulls?"

She blinked, startled. She'd been studying him, speechless.

Her original plan—to provoke Superman, then fight before bonding—collapsed in that instant. His presence struck something in her chest, arching a golden warmth. She momentarily forgot what she'd come for.

Malrick wasn't who she expected. He was more handsome than Fury's photos suggested—chiseled, golden light wound around his muscles like mythic energy. He seemed both ordinary neighbor-boy and divine hero incarnate.

"You don't need to talk to me," he said. "Everyone on Earth is expelling the Skrulls. Go explain it to them."

He didn't know how completely his appearance—and the faint presence of the Space Stone—had captivated her.

Carol inhaled, collecting herself. "I prefer to make my case through action."

Malrick's eyes flickered. "You want to fight?"

Carol's aura sharpened. "Not for the Skrulls—for justice."

He inclined his head. "Justice?" Then he stood. In an instant, his Dormammu suit appeared, engulfing him in darkness.

"Jarvis, mobilize satellites. Let them watch."

"Yes, Young Master Malrick—every system is live," Jarvis confirmed.

"Okay, let's do this, auntie"

Carol's face darkened. "Did you call me auntie just now?"

He looked quizzical and disappeared upward with a sudden flicker.

"Auntie!" she barked, half-amused, half-irritated. Energy crackled around her—gold photon strands lifting her hair.

Within seconds, she chased him into the sky.

They emerged in the stratosphere—roughly thirty kilometers above ground—clouds like tofu-fields swallowed beneath them, sunlight reflecting like opposing auras. Nᴇw ɴovel chaptᴇrs are published on N(o)vᴇl(F)ire.nᴇt

Malrick stood still. "Use your stronger combat mode. You're too weak now."

Carol smirked. "You know about Double Star Mode? I don't need it for you."

She surged forward, fist smashing through the sound barrier, wings of photon energy radiating outward.

Malrick watched, unmoved. His eyes glowed red. Two scorching heat-vision beams cut the stratosphere in half and struck her.

Caught off guard, Carol's body reacted. She auto-shifted into Double Star Mode. The impact blasted her several kilometers back, energy tears cascading from her form, wails echoing through the skies.

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Milestones

100 Power stones = 1 Bonus Chapter

200 Power stones = 3 Bonus Chapters

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