Marvel: The Enlightened One#167+168: After Tonight, Wakanda Will Be No More, The Demon King Is Breaking Through the Atmosphere

PFFT!

Sharon had just clinked coffee cups with Hawk and taken a sip. The next second, watching Hawk vanish into thin air right in front of her, she immediately spat the coffee she'd just drunk straight out of her mouth.

The next instant, Sharon shot to her feet, coughing as she rushed out of the café, pulling out her phone and dialing the New York SHIELD command center.

"Stan Lee Service Cen—"

"NYSL, Phoenix location, now!"

Sharon yanked open her car door and climbed in, rattling off her code name while ordering the command center to pull up Hawk's phone tracking immediately.

She still didn't know what had happened.

But one thing was certain.

Something bad had gone down.

Even though Hawk had disappeared in an instant, Sharon had still managed to catch the killing intent radiating off him in that split second before he vanished.

The question was...

Who the hell was stupid enough to provoke Hawk? The same guy who'd leveled Quantico, killed the Hulk at Culver Lake, slaughtered Dark Elves at Stonehenge, and flew to Mars once a week to spar with Thor?

Just then, the voice on the other end of the line came through urgently.

"Location acquired."

"Where??"

"Empire State University."

"Holy cow."

The moment Sharon heard that Hawk's location pinged at Empire State University, she sucked in a sharp breath. At the same time, a chill shot straight up her spine from her tailbone to the top of her skull.

Alright.

She took back what she'd just thought.

Those people hadn't provoked Hawk.

They'd gone after Gwen.

Which meant they weren't just stupid—they had a death wish for their entire bloodline.

What were they thinking?

Didn't they know what happened to the last person who tried this? His whole family got wiped out.

Most importantly—

Even the old-timers on Capitol Hill and their deep-pocketed backers wanted to know Hawk's secrets. But none of them dared to try going after Gwen—who, on the surface, looked like an easy target—because they knew better.

Because trying meant dying.

After all—

When a demon king willingly puts on chains, the smartest thing everyone else can do is leave those chains alone. Otherwise, the only thing you'll unleash is the most terrifying version of that demon king.

And now someone had tried to help the demon king break free.

...

"Gwen, run!"

"You two go first!"

Inside Empire State University's gymnasium, Flash Thompson shouted at Gwen and MJ—who had just come here looking for MJ—then charged straight at the three cold-faced, bald Black women rushing toward Gwen.

Flash Thompson might have been a school bully.

But in his mind, he was the bully. Which meant he was the only one allowed to pick on students. Nobody else could.

So back at Midtown High, the weaker students' opinions of Flash Thompson had actually been mixed.

After all, a bully who only knew how to push people around but didn't know how to protect them could never become captain of the football team, let alone lead his teammates to second place in the National High School Championship.

So, Flash Thompson didn't hesitate. He charged straight at the three bald Black women.

WHAM!

The lead woman—cold and expressionless—swung the golden staff in her hand and sent Flash Thompson flying.

Flash skidded across the smooth gymnasium floor, his back slamming into the wall with a heavy thud.

The three bald Black women didn't even glance back. They kept charging after MJ and Gwen, who were already running toward the back exit.

Their mission was simple: capture Gwen and use her to force Hawk to surrender his life.

No other reason.

Hawk had to pay with his life for Wakanda's suffering and their old king's death.

This was the will of the King. The new King.

These three bald Black women were members of Wakanda's Dora Milaje.

They were even more elite than Wakanda's Royal Guard. Every member of the Dora Milaje was female, and they were Wakanda's finest warriors.

With the equipment and weapons they carried, any one of them could take down ten regular soldiers without breaking a sweat.

The three of them had actually infiltrated New York a month ago. Since then, they'd been watching from the shadows, waiting for an opportunity to catch Gwen alone and use her to control Hawk.

Yes.

Their target from the very beginning had been Gwen.

The reason was simple.

Hawk was too strong.

Terrifyingly strong. Suffocatingly strong.

Fortunately, he wasn't without weaknesses. Wakanda had found Hawk's weakness.

His fiancée, Gwen.

Compared to capturing Hawk—which had a success rate of basically zero—capturing Gwen and using her to control Hawk had a success rate of nearly one hundred percent.

Once they realized this, the Wakandans couldn't understand why the outsiders who also coveted Hawk's power hadn't thought to use Gwen as leverage.

But the outsiders didn't understand.

The Wakandans did.

Capture Gwen. Control Hawk. Kill Hawk.

The plan was perfect.

Unfortunately, over the past month, the three operatives sent to execute the kidnapping mission hadn't found a single opening.

Because Gwen's life was too routine.

Class. Lunch with Hawk. Class. Leave together after school. Go home together.

They'd considered launching a speed attack during class—grabbing Gwen quickly and getting her back to Wakanda before anyone could react.

But that plan was quickly scrapped.

Because Empire State University was right next to New York University. The moment they made a move, if the operation was exposed, Hawk—who was right next door—could probably get there in under five seconds.

So they kept waiting. Kept watching.

They'd thought today would be another disappointment. But then, suddenly, Hawk left NYU. And he didn't wait for Gwen.

The three women—built more like men than women—practically vibrated with excitement.

This was their chance.

They didn't hesitate. The moment they confirmed Hawk's car had left NYU and driven a full block away, they immediately drove their vehicle straight through the entrance barrier at Empire State University with a loud crash. They didn't waste a single second, driving straight to the gymnasium.

After getting out of the car, faced with the crowd of college students, and to avoid wasting time, they knocked out one student per swing with their staffs, not even glancing left or right as they made a beeline for Gwen.

Just like they'd done to Flash Thompson moments ago.

...

MJ and Gwen ran ahead.

The three women chased behind.

Just then, The lead bald woman, seeing that Gwen and MJ were about to push open the emergency exit and escape, transformed her Vibranium staff into a spear in an instant.

The next second, She threw it.

It hit its mark.

CRASH!

"Oh my God!"

MJ's heart nearly stopped. She screamed, staring at the steel door that had just been pierced clean through by the Vibranium spear. She tried to pull it open again, but the spear had pinned the door to the ground. No matter how hard she pulled, it wouldn't budge.

The next second—

MJ turned around and saw the three women charging toward them like panthers. Without thinking, she pulled Gwen behind her. "Don't be scared. I'll protect you."

"Thanks."

The person saying "thanks" wasn't Gwen.

It was Hawk.

The moment Hawk's voice appeared, so did his figure—as if ripples had spread through the air—standing in front of MJ, who was standing in front of Gwen.

Hawk, who had just teleported over and heard MJ's declaration, turned to look at her and said, "But my woman? I protect her myself."

Gwen's face lit up with joy at seeing Hawk.

But the three Wakandan women, who had been charging forward, went pale. Without a second thought, they immediately turned and tried to flee.

Alas...

Could they escape?

Hawk glanced at the three pitch-black, bald women trying to run and let out a cold laugh.

He didn't even lift a finger.

With his telekinesis, the moment his gaze landed on the three bald women, they froze in place as if someone had pressed pause—still in mid-sprint, completely immobilized.

After doing that, Hawk didn't immediately deal with the three women. Instead, he turned to Gwen, his lips curving upward slightly. "See? I listened to you. I showed them mercy in Africa. And this is how they repaid me."

Gwen met Hawk's half-smiling gaze. "I asked you to be merciful because I didn't want you to lose yourself. But more importantly, mercy is precious. It's not infinite."

Hawk understood.

"So they don't deserve my mercy anymore."

"I told you to try being a good person. I didn't tell you to be a doormat with no boundaries. And besides, you're forgetting something."

"Oh?"

"My grandfather owns a farm in Georgia, Hawk."

Gwen said it with a smile.

Hawk smiled back.

With a single thought—without even looking—the three bald women frozen in place not far away suddenly bled from their seven orifices and died on the spot.

From start to finish, Hawk never once looked at the three women. He also never thought about talking to them.

After all, When you already know the answer, there's no point in asking the question.

Wakanda had to be destroyed.

Hawk's mind was made up.

Just then—

Sharon, who had been speeding the entire way, finally arrived. The first thing she saw was the three bald women—still frozen in place, blood streaming from their eyes, ears, nose, and mouth.

Sharon immediately recognized who they were.

Wakanda.

But...

How was this possible? The Big Five had coordinated a joint operation. Wakanda's communications and transportation had been completely locked down. How had these three Wakandans gotten out? And how the hell had they made it all the way to New York City?

Sharon's expression shifted rapidly as she looked at Hawk.

Just as she was about to speak—

Hawk beat her to it.

"Sharon, give Maria Hill a call."

"Huh?"

"Tell Maria Hill to pull everyone out. Before I get there."

"Oh God..."

Sharon drew in a sharp breath. Listening to Hawk's ice-cold voice, she already knew what was about to happen. But she couldn't stop herself from looking at him anyway.

"You're going to—"

"After tonight, Wakanda will be no more."

With that, Hawk looked up.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!

He shot straight into the sky, making no effort to hide his presence. He punched straight through the roof of Empire State University's gymnasium, and once he reached the open air, a sonic boom erupted around him.

His body turned into a streak of light, racing toward Wakanda.

<><><><><><><><>

Sharon looked up at the gaping hole in the ceiling above her, then at the brilliant sonic boom cloud in the sky. Her expression went blank all over again.

The next moment—

Snapping back to reality and remembering what Hawk had just said, Sharon quickly pulled out her phone and dialed back to headquarters.

At that exact moment, the alarms at the New York SHIELD Operations Command Center went off—triggered the instant the sonic boom appeared over Empire State University.

"Satellite detecting superhuman energy signature."

"Running match."

"Got it. It's Phoenix."

"Visual confirmed. Phoenix is breaking through the atmosphere."

"Is today his scheduled fight with Thor?"

"No way. Thor's with Jane Foster at some conference in New Mexico, isn't he?"

"Trajectory prediction complete."

"Where's he headed?"

"Africa. Wakanda!"

With the seamless coordination of the SHIELD agents, the command center's main screen quickly split in two. One half displayed the satellite feed of Hawk rapidly breaking through the atmosphere. The other showed a global satellite map, with dotted lines connecting across it, all converging on a single destination: Wakanda, Africa.

Commander Victoria Hand stood with her arms crossed, eyebrows raised as she stared at the projected destination calculated by SHIELD's latest research project—Insight.

Just then, Sharon's call came through.

"Sharon, what happened at Empire State? Phoenix just—"

"Commander, three people from Wakanda just tried to assassinate Gwen."

"..."

The calm expression on Commander Victoria Hand's face vanished. Hearing that someone had tried to kill the demon king's chains, she immediately demanded, "How is Gwen now? Is she hurt?"

Sharon glanced over at Gwen, who was helping MJ lift Flash Thompson—who'd been thrown across the room moments earlier—back to his feet. "No. She's fine."

Commander Victoria Hand at the Operations Center let out a relieved breath.

And then—

She processed what Sharon had just reported.

"Their communications and transportation have been completely locked down. How the hell did they get out? And how did they make it all the way to New York City?"

Victoria Hand now understood why Hawk had broken through the atmosphere and headed straight for Wakanda. But she still couldn't wrap her head around how Wakandans had made it to New York.

Right under their noses.

The lockdown on Wakanda had been a joint operation by the Big Five. Total, around-the-clock, 360-degree coverage with zero blind spots.

It had been nearly thirteen months since Wakanda was exposed.

And over the past year, Wakanda's information had been sealed up tight.

Back when Wakanda could still show up at the UN to beg for aid, they'd at least had some visibility.

But now? Wakanda didn't even have the chance to surface. If you grabbed a random person off the street right now, they probably wouldn't even know Wakanda existed.

And yet, under a joint lockdown by the Big Five, three Wakandans had somehow appeared in New York City. Right under SHIELD's nose. And they'd tried to assassinate Gwen—the woman they'd dubbed the demon king's chains.

How could this be allowed?

"Find out!"

"Immediately investigate how those three got to New York."

After snapping back to attention, Commander Victoria Hand issued the order, then confirmed with Sharon, "Have their identities been verified?"

Sharon glanced at the three corpses lying on the ground after Hawk had left. "No doubt about it. Bald, built like tanks, pitch-black skin, Vibranium weapons. No one else fits that description but Wakanda. And even if they weren't from Wakanda, it wouldn't matter—because Hawk's already decided Wakanda's responsible."

Sharon's pupils contracted as she remembered the urgent matter she needed to report. She quickly continued, "Commander, Hawk's already on his way to Wakanda. Before he left, he told me to contact Commander Hill and said we'd better pull everyone we have in Wakanda out immediately."

Victoria's body stiffened at the New York SHIELD Command Center.

"Hawk said that?"

"Yes. He said, 'After tonight, Wakanda will be no more.'"

"SHIT."

Hearing Sharon relay those exact words, Victoria sucked in a sharp breath. She immediately looked up at the SHIELD agent. "Connect me to Commander Hill right now. How long until Phoenix reaches Wakanda?"

One SHIELD agent immediately started connecting to Maria Hill.

Another agent quickly reported.

"Phoenix has slowed down. At his current speed, he'll reach Wakanda airspace in approximately thirty minutes."

"He's only giving us thirty minutes."

Victoria immediately understood. The moment she heard Hawk had slowed his speed, she realized those thirty minutes were the window Hawk was giving them.

After all—

Given Hawk's ability to make a round trip to Mars in a single day, if he went full speed, he wouldn't need anywhere close to thirty minutes to reach Wakanda.

Obviously—

Those thirty minutes weren't for Wakanda's sake.

They were for SHIELD's.

"Sir, Commander Hill's comms are connected."

"Patch her through immediately!"

...

"...Victoria?"

It was currently 7 a.m. in the Wakanda region.

Maria Hill, seated in Wakanda's conference hall alongside Security Council Representative Alexander Pierce and other Council members for the thirty-sixth round of negotiations, saw the emergency-coded communication come through. She stood, excused herself from the conference room, and stepped outside to answer.

"What's happened?" Maria Hill's voice came through clearly at the New York SHIELD Operations Center.

Victoria didn't waste time.

Time was short.

"Commander, Wakanda sent operatives to assassinate Gwen Stacy. The attempt failed. Hawk is furious. He'll reach Wakanda in approximately thirty minutes. He's ordered us to evacuate all our people immediately. He informed us—after tonight, Wakanda will be no more."

"???"

Question marks popped up one after another in Hill's mind as Victoria's rapid-fire report came through.

But no matter how many questions she had, now wasn't the time to ask them.

Hill reacted almost the instant Victoria finished speaking, turning to the assistant who had followed her out and speaking in a low voice. "Put out the word immediately. SHIELD transport planes start up now. Notify all SHIELD personnel—evacuate Wakanda immediately. Relocate to... the Hell Gate."

The so-called Hell Gate was the impossibly deep crater Hawk and Demon Hulk had blasted into the grassland during their battle last year.

SHIELD had spent six full months pulling Demon Hulk's corpse out of that pit. That's how the Hell Gate got its name.

The assistant nodded immediately and left.

After hanging up, Hill immediately turned around and walked back into the Wakandan Palace conference room.

Her orders only applied to SHIELD operatives. She had no authority over the coalition forces' soldiers. Those guys wouldn't listen to her.

That required Alexander Pierce to issue the order.

At that moment, inside the conference room—

Wakanda's new king, T'Challa, along with the other tribal chiefs, was arguing forcefully with Alexander Pierce and the others, demanding everything that belonged to Wakanda.

It all came down to one thing.

The coalition forces had to leave Wakanda immediately.

Wakanda belonged to the Wakandan people. Not to the rest of the world.

At the same time, the new king T'Challa was demanding that the Security Council immediately hand over the culprit who had brought chaos to Wakanda. Hawk had to be held responsible for the incident.

Alexander Pierce, leading the negotiations, heard King T'Challa's demands and actually laughed.

Turns out, people really do laugh when they're at a loss for words.

Hand over Hawk.

Do you even hear yourself right now?

Just then, Hill walked back in from outside, sat down beside him, leaned over, and put her mouth near his ear, making sure only he could hear.

"Wakanda sent operatives to assassinate Hawk's fiancée, Gwen. The attempt failed. Hawk is on his way here. We only have twenty minutes to evacuate."

"Holy hell."

After Hill's words, Alexander Pierce's pupils contracted rapidly. At the same time, a chill shot through him. His eyes flicked toward T'Challa, seated across from him in his Black Panther suit.

Good God...

He'd thought these people launching a surprise attack on the Security Council was already their limit. Turns out, they had an even more insane move up their sleeves.

Whether it was Congress, SHIELD, Hydra within SHIELD, or the Security Council itself, everyone understood one thing very clearly.

Gwen Stacy—code-named the Demon King's Chains—was even more untouchable than the Demon King himself.

And these people hadn't just tried to touch her.

They'd tried to shatter the chains entirely.

Jesus, God, the Virgin Mary!

Alexander Pierce's mind was screaming internally. But as an accomplished politician, even though his insides were experiencing a magnitude-ten earthquake, his exterior remained perfectly calm.

The gray-haired man with glasses still maintained his gentle, cultured smile.

After Hill finished her report, Alexander coughed subtly, glanced at the Wakandans sitting across from him in their bizarre outfits—some of the chiefs even had giant rings hanging from their chins, looking like ridiculous forest clowns—then fixed his gaze on Black Panther T'Challa. "We'll need to return and consider your terms this time."

With that—

He didn't give the Wakandans time to react. He stood immediately and walked straight out of the conference room.

The other Security Council members participating in the negotiations froze for a moment, then quickly stood and followed Alexander Pierce out in a rush.

"MOVE!"

"Move fast! Put out the word—all personnel evacuate Wakanda immediately. Rendezvous at Hell Gate!"

"Understood!"

"..."