Marvel: The Enlightened One#161+162: Mephisto Never Tells The Truth, The Missing Spider-Man

Hawk's tone was ice-cold.

Mephisto froze, his mind practically short-circuiting. He seriously wondered if getting his horn knocked off had damaged his hearing.

"I said, take your sister's soul and get the hell out of my Hell."

"And I said—that's not enough anymore."

Hawk hovered in the air, his gaze locked with Mephisto's.

"I gave you two chances."

"The first time, I told you—resurrect my sister, and you'll have three favors from me."

"My first offer is always the best one."

"But you didn't take it."

"Then I came here, and I gave you a second chance."

"The San Venganza Contract for my sister's soul. I have no interest in your Hell."

"And you refused that too."

"Now we're on attempt number three."

"So here it is—"

"Hand over my sister's soul. And from now on, your Hell will no longer have claim over any soul connected to me. Anyone who praises my name enters my Underworld!"

Hawk stared at Mephisto, his face expressionless beneath the visor. "That's my new offer. Accept it or refuse it—your call. But if you try to call for another timeout, I won't just be asking for souls connected to me anymore."

As long as he didn't accept the blackmail, no one could blackmail him.

Having already prepared himself for the worst-case scenario—that Mephisto might actually destroy Anya's soul—Hawk was now terrifyingly unyielding.

Even if Mephisto did burn her soul, it wasn't as if she'd be gone forever.

There was still the Soul Stone, after all.

Worst case, he'd leave Hell, track down the family planning director Thanos, let Thanos retrieve the Soul Stone, then trade the Reality Stone for it and use the Soul Stone to resurrect his sister's soul.

Problem solved.

Not a big deal!

But—

Since Mephisto was opening negotiations again, fine. They'd negotiate.

Three strikes and you're out.

This was the last time.

He'd already braced himself for the worst outcome.

Mephisto listened to Hawk's third and final offer, his expression darkening until it looked like ink might drip from his face.

If he could go back in time, he swore he would accept Hawk's terms without hesitation—right there in the bar.

If he'd agreed back then, would things have gotten this bad?

Keep fighting?

This was his home turf. Even if Hawk wrecked the place, Hawk could just dust off his hands and leave. Meanwhile, Mephisto would be left picking up the pieces.

He'd been through this before with Odin and Eternity.

But—

Neither of them had ever threatened him like Hawk just did.

"From now on, I'll do nothing but hunt you. Your Hell will have no souls entering, and no demons leaving."

Where the hell was the leverage in that?

This wasn't a hostage situation.

This was a porcupine—touch it and it explodes.

Just—

Mephisto's face remained dark as he stared at Hawk. "What do you mean by 'praising your name enters your Underworld'? I'm already letting your sister go. Are you seriously going to fight me for Earth's souls now?"

Hawk's tone didn't waver. "You started this war. But I'm the one who decides when it ends—and how. My condition is simple. My friends, your Hell has no authority over their souls. Take it or leave it. Up to you."

If he actually cared about building up his Underworld, his third condition wouldn't have been this limited.

After all, he had better things to do than obsess over becoming a God of the Underworld when he could aim for something higher.

But letting it go completely? That didn't sit right either. The fire in his chest demanded satisfaction.

Conveniently, this was a good way to prevent Mephisto from trying this extortion nonsense again in the future. Taking custody of all the souls connected to him was a solid preemptive strike.

Mephisto's face was a storm cloud.

"And if I refuse?"

"Then we fight."

Hawk's expression remained blank. The San Venganza Contract reappeared in his hand, and he held it up toward Mephisto. "But like I said—three chances. That's it. After this, there won't be any more negotiations. I'll come after you without rest. Either you find a way to kill me, or you sit in your withering Hell and rot away."

Mephisto's face twisted through a dozen different emotions. His demonic eyes locked onto Hawk, unblinking.

Hawk stared back, his gaze calm and unshaken.

A long silence stretched between them.

Finally—

"Get out!"

Mephisto tore his gaze away, suppressing the fury burning in his chest. "Take your sister. Get the hell out of my Hell."

Hawk wouldn't compromise.

So Mephisto had no choice but to.

Simple as that.

He couldn't afford to gamble.

Now that Hawk had his own Underworld, his soul was beyond Mephisto's reach.

Hawk could afford to burn everything down. He wasn't betting his entire existence on this.

Mephisto was.

He only had this one dimension.

For now—

"Get out of my Hell. And don't let me see your face again."

"Heh."

Hearing that, Hawk finally allowed himself a small breath of relief—though he kept it internal. His expression didn't change as he let out a dry chuckle. "As long as you don't come looking for trouble, I have zero interest in you."

With that—

CRACK.

The Black Phoenix Surplice shattered, the pieces dissolving into the air before reforming mid-flight into the shape of a phoenix ornament. It twisted through space and vanished, returning to the throne room of his Underworld.

Hawk's feet touched the ground. He looked at his sister standing before him, and for the first time in years—since 2009—his smile was genuine. Unguarded. Full of joy.

He looked at Anya, tears streaming down her face, and spoke softly.

"Hello, my sister. I'm here to take you home."

Anya stared at her brother, standing so close she could reach out and touch him. Instinctively, she raised her right hand, and the moment her fingers made contact with Hawk's cheek, her tears turned to a radiant smile.

"...Hello, my brother. I knew you'd come for me. Just like you promised."

Anya's lips trembled as her hand rested on Hawk's face.

She remembered the moment before she died—when her brother had pulled her from the rubble with his bare hands, cradling her broken body. In her final moments, as her brother wept in despair, he had suddenly ignited with desperate hope and sworn he would bring her back.

And now he had.

He'd come to take her out of this godforsaken Hell.

Thinking of that, Anya threw herself into Hawk's arms and cried openly.

"Brother!"

"Come on. Let's go home."

Hawk held his sister tightly, pressing a kiss to her forehead. His voice was gentle, warm.

And then—

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!

Space shattered like glass, revealing the world beyond—a place of bright sunlight, singing birds, blooming flowers, and eternal spring.

The Elysian Fields.

Hawk stepped forward, pulling his sister with him. At the same time, his left hand flicked backward, tossing the San Venganza Contract behind him.

Mephisto moved instantly, snatching the contract out of the air.

By the time he looked up, Hawk had already crossed into his Underworld with Anya in his arms.

WHOOSH.

The spatial rift sealed shut at a speed invisible to the naked eye.

The moment Anya's soul set foot in the Underworld—

Hawk smiled.

He'd been wrong.

Mephisto, that lying bastard, hadn't told him a single word of truth.

What was all that about needing a vessel to house the soul before resurrection could happen?

Bullshit!

If Mephisto wanted to, he could resurrect any soul he pleased—fully, completely, and permanently.

Now that Hawk controlled his Underworld and wielded the Law of Life and Death, the moment Anya's soul touched his realm, he knew—he could bring her back to life, too.

He had the same power.

But—

Not yet.

Because the Life-Death Law he possessed was just a fragment—the one he'd taken from Blackheart's corpse.

Incomplete. Insufficient.

Of course, if he really wanted to resurrect Anya before his Cosmo fully manifested, it wasn't impossible.

Just like Mephisto had lied about—he could find a vessel for her soul, then use that method to bring her back.

He'd go back, commission a clone, and use it to truly resurrect his sister.

But for now—

He'd have to ask Anya to be patient and stay in the Elysian Fields for a little longer.

Hawk turned to his sister and explained the situation.

Anya blinked her wide eyes, completely confused.

Wait for a little longer?

She glanced around at the paradise in front of her.

The pure blue sky and white clouds.

The lush green grass.

Endless fields of blooming flowers.

Crystal-clear streams flowing through the landscape.

And towering in the heart of it all—the magnificent Underworld King's Palace.

So... living here counts as hardship?

Then a memory surfaced—from when she was little, after her heart surgery, when she woke up in the hospital to see her brother sitting by her bedside. She'd smiled at him and described the place she thought was Hell.

And the paradise in front of her now? It wasn't just similar to what she'd described back then.

It was an exact replica. One-to-one.

Anya's thoughts churned. She stared at the serene, peaceful paradise that perfectly matched her childhood imagination of the afterlife. Her chest ached.

Then she turned around and looked at her brother—Hawk—who stood behind her with a gentle, warm smile.

"Brother."

"Yeah."

"These past few years... must have been really hard for you."

Anya looked at him seriously.

She'd died at fourteen. But she'd spent all these years trapped in Hell. She wasn't some naive little girl anymore.

Living in Hell for so long, she understood exactly how difficult it was to steal a soul from Mephisto's grasp.

And her brother had done it in four years.

Just four years.

Four years ago, he'd stormed through Hell and forced Mephisto—the ruler of this dimension—to release her.

But four years ago, her brother had been just an ordinary human.

So—

She couldn't even imagine how much blood, sweat, and suffering he'd endured over those four years to get strong enough to bring her back from that endless, sunless Hell.

Brother must have been so tired these past four years.

Anya lifted her head, her eyes glistening with tears again as she looked at the brother who had always treasured her—both before and now.

"Brother, thank you."

"Don't talk nonsense."

Hawk laughed, reaching out to gently wipe the tears from her eyes. Then, just like when they were kids, he ruffled her hair affectionately. "You're not just anyone. You're my sister. You're my... you're my family."

He'd almost said "only family," but then he remembered Gwen. He paused mid-sentence, raising an eyebrow as he looked at Anya.

"By the way—I got you a sister-in-law. You're going to love her."

Anya's tear-filled eyes blinked.

She looked up.

"Sister-in-law?"

"..."

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

"Gwen, you should have seen my sister's face."

"It's like she couldn't believe I actually managed to find myself a girlfriend."

"That expression..."

"Man."

"She thought her brother spent the last four years living in misery."

"Too bad she can't come back to the real world yet, so you won't be able to meet her for a while."

The moment Hawk returned to New York, he found his fiancée Gwen—who had just woken up and was pulling clothes from the dryer—and immediately launched into sharing the joy of rescuing his sister.

Well...

Half rescued, anyway.

At least until he fully manifested his Cosmo or cloned a body for his sister, Anya wouldn't be able to truly resurrect.

But that wasn't important.

What mattered was that he could now sink his consciousness into his Underworld anytime he wanted and visit his sister Anya, who was currently living in the Elysian Fields.

Even though the Reality Stone had already been used to solidify his current power level and couldn't be used for anything else, the Underworld was still part of his Cosmo. Which meant modifying the Elysian Fields was still easy enough.

Bottom line?

Hawk was happy.

Extremely happy.

Gwen sat on the couch, chin resting on one hand, smiling as she listened to Hawk—who had barely walked in the door before grabbing her and rambling excitedly about everything that had happened.

She didn't interrupt. Just quietly listened, sharing in his joy.

Though—

As Gwen watched Hawk happily insist that his past four years "weren't that hard," her mind drifted back through the countless memories she had of him since ninth grade.

Not that hard?

...Sure.

Whatever makes you happy.

Gwen pushed the flashes of memory aside, smiling as she listened to Hawk proudly declare how beautiful his sister was now. Finally, she gently interrupted with a teasing question. "So is your sister prettier, or am I?"

Hawk, who had seemed ready to talk for hours, went instantly silent.

He blinked, staring at his fiancée, who was still propping up her chin with one hand, smiling innocently at him.

Gwen's smile was radiant.

Hawk's expression turned helpless.

"Gwen, I'm trying to share my happiness with you."

"I know."

Gwen stood up from the couch, cupped Hawk's face in her hands, kissed him gently, then spoke with complete sincerity. "You did amazing. But you'll be the most amazing once you actually bring Anya back to life. So how about this—I'll go upstairs and finish folding the laundry, and you keep working hard. Once you finally resurrect Anya and she meets me, she'll know her sister-in-law is real, won't she?"

Hawk blinked, meeting Gwen's gaze thoughtfully, then nodded slowly.

"You're right."

"Good. I'm going to fold clothes now."

Gwen smiled again, then padded barefoot toward the stairs, her steps light and graceful. She disappeared up to the second floor in moments.

Hawk sat on the couch, watching her go. Only after she vanished from sight did he snap out of his daze.

He had to admit—Gwen was right.

Anya hadn't truly come back to life yet.

So—

He'd save the real celebration for when she was fully resurrected. When that day came, he could throw a huge party, invite everyone he knew, and introduce his sister Anya to the world with pride.

Hawk nodded to himself, pulled out his phone, scrolled to his HYDRA contact Anna's number, and dialed.

Cloning, after all, was illegal.

Which meant HYDRA was definitely the right group to ask.

After all, HYDRA was basically the poster child for illegal activities.

After a moment—

Hawk lowered the phone, staring at the unanswered call.

What the hell?

No answer?

That didn't make sense. Was she on vacation or something?

Oh, right.

It was still Christmas break. Fair enough.

He'd try someone else.

Hawk's mind immediately jumped to someone who would definitely be reachable during the holidays. He scrolled through his contacts, found his SHIELD friend Sharon's number, and hit dial.

If HYDRA wasn't picking up, no problem.

He still had SHIELD.

After all, as the saying goes—HYDRA and SHIELD have always been two sides of the same coin. If HYDRA knew where to find cloning tech, SHIELD had at least a fifty-percent chance of knowing too.

Soon enough—

The call connected.

Sharon's enthusiastic voice immediately filled Hawk's ear the moment the line opened.

"Hawk! You're back already?"

"I'm already back in New York."

"That fast? So does that mean Mephisto—"

"He's not dead."

Hawk shook his head with a dry laugh. "He's the ruler of a Hell dimension. In his own realm, he's effectively immortal."

Even Odin and Eternity couldn't kill Mephisto. The best they could do was beat the hell out of him.

Was Hawk stronger than Odin and Eternity?

Not even close.

There was only one way to kill Mephisto—cut off Hell's energy supply. Stop all souls from entering, and eventually, Mephisto would wither and die inside his own dimension.

But that would take forever.

Which was exactly why Odin and Eternity had both decided it wasn't worth the effort.

And it was the same reason Hawk had made the same choice.

There was no help for it.

Mephisto was like a stubborn piece of gum stuck to the bottom of your shoe—disgusting to look at, and even more disgusting when you tried to scrape it off.

The best approach was simply to ignore it.

Either that, or waste your precious time trying to outlast him in a battle of attrition. But that was a losing trade.

Still—

Just because Hawk couldn't do it now didn't mean he couldn't do it later.

Once he fully manifested his Cosmo, once his Underworld had a full army of Specters at his command, the first thing he'd do was wipe Mephisto off the face of the universe.

Let's see you try to blackmail me then, you bastard.

Hawk's thoughts churned as he chatted casually with Sharon for a few more minutes before steering the conversation back to the real reason he'd called.

"By the way, does SHIELD have any research into cloning technology?"

"Cloning?"

Sharon paused, then replied instinctively. "Hawk, cloning is explicitly banned by the Big Five. Any cloning experiments are illegal."

Hawk hummed in acknowledgment.

"I know. So do you have any?"

"I'd need to report this up the chain."

"Thanks."

"No problem. When I get back to New York, just buy me afternoon tea and we'll call it even."

"Deal."

Hawk smiled as he agreed. "Are you coming back today?"

Sharon took a deep breath, staring at the ticket in her hand for yet another motorcycle stunt show—her second purchase after the first one had been a bust. "No. I came to Texas to see a stunt show, and I'm going to see one before I leave. Otherwise, this whole vacation will have been for nothing."

Hawk shrugged.

"Alright. Give me a call when you're back in New York, and I'll treat you to that tea."

"Don't worry, I'll definitely remind you."

"See you."

"See you."

Hawk smiled as he hung up, then rolled his eyes thoughtfully before standing up from the couch.

He headed toward his study, planning to search online for cloning-related information.

After all, if Marvel had one thing in abundance, it was scientists.

Especially wild, independent scientists operating outside the system—those were everywhere.

If SHIELD didn't have what he needed, he could always throw some money at a rogue scientist and let them figure it out slowly.

He refused to believe that cloning tech in the Marvel Universe was harder to develop than Tony Stark's current nanotech suit project.

Of course—

If the wild scientist he found ended up failing, that was fine. He could accept failure. As long as they didn't try to scam him with a PowerPoint presentation full of empty promises.

But if they did try to scam him with a PowerPoint—

Heh.

I'll show you what it means to wish you were dead.

After all, his Underworld didn't just have the Elysian Fields. It also had eight terrifying Prisons of Hell.

Hawk opened his computer, his thoughts wandering as he clicked on the profile of a scientist who claimed to be researching cow cloning.

Several days later—

Early morning.

Hawk was practically dragged out of bed by Gwen, who had invited him—or more accurately, hauled him out the door by force.

After helping the still-groggy Hawk buckle his seatbelt, Gwen floored the gas pedal and drove her Toyota Corolla straight toward City Hall.

Today was the first day back after Christmas break, which meant City Hall was officially open again. It was also the day of Hawk's scheduled appointment to change his surname.

Gwen glanced at Hawk, who still looked half-asleep, with a mix of curiosity and concern. "Wait, seriously? It was only three times last night, and you're already out of commission?"

Hawk's vacant stare snapped back into focus at visible speed. He turned to Gwen with complete seriousness.

"I'm perfectly fine, thank you."

"Then why do you look like—"

"It has nothing to do with sleep."

Hawk leaned back against the headrest, rubbing his forehead, which was slightly swollen from his recent attempts to comprehend the Seventh Sense.

That's right.

He'd already found the doorway to the Seventh Sense.

It might have been because he'd finally rescued his sister from Hell, which had brought him a sense of clarity and completion he hadn't felt in years.

After all, saving his sister had been the core motivation behind his thousand-day training regimen—ten thousand punches every single day.

It had become an obsession.

And once that obsession was fulfilled, the fog lifted. For a brief, shining moment, Hawk felt as if he'd broken through the clouds and glimpsed the sun.

That was when he'd found the door to the Seventh Sense.

But—

Seeing the door and being able to open it were two entirely different things.

Forget it.

Why struggle?

He'd just cheat with the Mind Stone.

Hawk pressed his fingers against his slightly aching forehead, having spent days trying to comprehend the Seventh Sense on his own, and decisively abandoned the self-taught route.

Using the Mind Stone would work just as well. It wasn't like the Seventh Sense he gained through the Mind Stone would be any less legitimate than one he earned through meditation.

That didn't make sense.

The moment he let go of his stubborn insistence on doing it the hard way, clarity returned. His spirit, energy, and focus all snapped back into alignment.

An hour later—

Hawk and Gwen walked out of City Hall together.

The surname change was complete. From today forward, his legal name was Hawk Phoenix.

But the happiest person about it was Gwen.

After all, she was probably the only woman in all of New York who got to choose her married surname before the wedding even happened.

"Happy now?"

"Absolutely."

Gwen made no effort to hide her joy, smiling brightly at Hawk. "Mr. Phoenix."

Hawk chuckled.

"Then let's go home, future Mrs. Phoenix."

"Yes, Mr. Phoenix!"

Gwen's eyes curved into crescent moons.

And then—

Just as she was about to take Hawk's arm and leave, her phone rang.

It was Mary Jane.

Gwen answered.

"Hey, MJ—"

"Oh my God, Gwen—Peter's missing!"

"..."