Marvel: The Enlightened One-Chapter 77: [] - The Christmas Gift from the Military (Bonus)

Chapter 77: [77] - The Christmas Gift from the Military (Bonus)

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

The Christmas of 2012 didn’t look much different from any other year.

Holiday jingles played softly in the storefronts.

Snowflakes drifted down from the sky.

In the neighborhoods, children gathered in joyful packs, celebrating the special holiday.

The entirety of New York City was immersed in the joy of Christmas. Families were out celebrating in restaurants or gathered at home around warm fires, celebrating the arrival of the holiday.

Hawk, too, was reuniting with his family.

Just as he did every year, he boarded a bus as dusk began to fall and made his way to Calvary Cemetery. He walked through the fresh snow to spend the holiday with his sister.

Helen Stacy had invited him to spend the holiday with their family on Long Island.

But he had politely declined.

He knew that, barring any unforeseen circumstances, he and Gwen would eventually get married. They would become a family.

But that was still in the future.

And more importantly, he already had a family of his own.

So, Hawk had declined Helen’s invitation.

Growing up, he had spent every Christmas with his sister, Anya. Even after she had passed away in 2009, he had come here every year to spend the holiday with her.

Hawk knew how much his sister had loved the holidays, how much she had longed to be a part of the noisy, cheerful crowds, but her congenital heart condition had always forced her to watch from a distance.

The memory of it still twisted his heart. The thought of her spending the holiday alone, even now?

He couldn’t bear it.

...

In the cemetery, Hawk placed the food his sister Anya had always loved in front of her headstone. Then he leaned back against the cool marble and sat on the ground, gazing out at the distant scenery.

The snow fell in thick, heavy flakes.

It was strange.

The snow had been falling for nearly two hours, covering the surrounding grounds in a pristine white blanket. But the ground around Hawk, and around Anya’s headstone, was as dry as a summer’s day.

Like a tiger resting in a snow-covered field, the ground around him remained untouched, as if it were still summer.

Hawk leaned against the headstone, his eyes gently closed as his consciousness sank into his Cosmo.

After three days of rest, his Cosmo had completely absorbed the gamma energy he had taken from the Hulk. It felt entirely new.

It had, without a doubt, ascended.

Gamma energy was a very real power in the Marvel Universe. And by absorbing that real power, his Cosmo had, in turn, become a little more real.

It was still a long way from a true, complete universe—worlds apart, in fact.

But even with just that tiny fraction of newfound reality, the difference between his old Cosmo and his new one was like night and day.

To put it another way: Before, Hawk had needed to use the lake to drown the Hulk. Now, that was no longer necessary.

If he were to face the Hulk now, even on land, assuming the Hulk was at the same power level, he could beat him to death with his bare hands.

That was not an exaggeration.

Most importantly, Sinking his consciousness deep into his Cosmo, Hawk looked up at the constellation blazing in his inner sky. The Phoenix—brilliant, scorching, radiating an incomparable light. And among the stars, dozens of new ones had appeared.

Yes.

Dozens of new stars.

This was another unexpected reward from his successful revenge against the Hulk.

Though perhaps it wasn’t so unexpected.

The way of the Saint was the way of holy war. Every battle Hawk fought would add new stars to his Cosmo—strengthening him—creating a feedback loop where he grew stronger with every fight.

He planned to use these new stars to ignite the constellation of Draco, the Dragon.

The Phoenix had given him the power of Immortality and Rebirth. Draco would grant him the Might of the Dragon and the Dragon’s Guard.

The unbridled power of a dragon and a defense that was second to none.

That was the essence of Draco.

Among all the Saints, the Dragon was the only one whose power grew even stronger when he cast off his armor.

And besides...

This was a Dragon!!

The Phoenix’s call ignites the dawn.

The Dragon’s roar shatters the horizon.

Hawk slowly opened his eyes. He glanced at the photograph of his sister on the headstone, who seemed to be smiling at him. A soft expression touched his own face.

"The Hulk should be in Hell by now."

"You probably saw it."

"Don’t worry, the Abomination is next. It won’t be long."

"And be sure to tell Mephisto, if he isn’t taking good care of you, when I get to Hell, I’m going to twist his head off and use it as a urinal."

Just as Mephisto had once done to Zarathos.

Who’s Zarathos?

The Ghost Rider. Mephisto had defeated the ancient spirit, ripped his essence from his body, and shattered it into a million pieces. The power of the Ghost Rider was just a sliver of that original, immense power.

Hawk’s voice was gentle, as if speaking this way would allow his sister to hear him in Hell.

With his back against the headstone, Hawk closed his eyes and began to recount all the things from the past year that he thought might have amused his sister.

In these moments, Hawk was no longer the quiet, reserved young man he usually was. He was very talkative.

He even told her about today’s top headline.

Tony Stark’s battle with the Extremis-powered Aldrich Killian at the Port of Rose Hill in Tennessee, and the spectacular fireworks display he had made with his Iron Legion.

"...Last night, at the Port of Rose Hill, Tennessee, a battle of unprecedented scale culminated in a hero’s dramatic farewell and a startling public confession."

"After successfully thwarting the deadly threat posed by the terrorist Aldrich Killian and his Extremis soldiers, Tony Stark made a stunning move—"

"He ordered his remaining Iron Legion suits to fly into the sky and self-destruct in a priceless fireworks display that lit up the night."

"And just this morning, at seven a.m, Tony Stark reappeared and gave an interview, stating..."

...

Leaning against the headstone, Hawk recited the morning paper from memory.

The cemetery was silent, save for his voice.

If a timid person had been passing by and heard that low, demonic whisper in the darkness, they would have thought they had just seen a ghost.

After a while, Hawk’s voice faded. He leaned against his sister Anya’s headstone, as if he had fallen asleep.

Just like last year, and the year before, Hawk planned to stay here and spend Christmas with his sister.

After all, this would probably be the last time.

Because next year, by Christmas at the latest, he would find a way to Hell, and he would bring her back.

Mephisto could either give him his sister, or he could die.

There was no other choice.

...

Time passed.

The distant noises from outside the cemetery faded as the hours went by. In that moment, it felt as if all of New York City had fallen silent.

But then, he heard it. A faint, rhythmic sound, carried on the wind, accompanied by a low, almost imperceptible tremor in the ground.

Footsteps...

The grinding of tank treads.

The sounds grew louder, closer.

At the same time, his phone began to vibrate in his pocket.

He had silenced the ringer in case Gwen called, but he hadn’t turned it off. Feeling the vibration, Hawk opened his eyes and pulled out his phone.

He looked at the caller ID.

It wasn’t Gwen.

It was Anna.

Hawk thought for a moment, then answered the call.

"Hello..."

"Hawk, I just got word. The military knows you’re the one who broke into the Quantico base. They’ve locked onto your position and they’ve already sent a team after you."

The moment he answered, Anna’s urgent voice came through the phone.

The message was clear: They’re here to collect you...

Hawk’s brow furrowed. He released the tight control he normally kept on his five senses.

Instantly. He heard the rumble of armored vehicles rolling across the ground.

The clatter of weapons and gear as soldiers moved into position.

Hawk didn’t speak. He simply hung up the phone. His face was stone-cold as he stood up and looked toward the sky, watching the armed helicopter in the distance—searchlight blazing, rotors thundering as it closed in fast.

A moment later, the lead helicopter was directly overhead. Its searchlight slammed down, pinning him in a brilliant, blinding cone of white light.

THUMP-THUMP-THUMP-THUMP!

The helicopter stabilized its position over the cemetery. The cabin door slid open, and a soldier took his seat behind a minigun, aiming the weapon—capable of firing hundreds of rounds a second—directly at the figure in the searchlight.

At the same time—

CRASH!

Two armored vehicles, each mounted with some kind of sonic cannon, smashed through the cemetery gates. They drove straight through the rows of headstones, crushing them under their treads as they rumbled to a stop in front of Hawk.

Click-clack.

Click-clack.

Federal soldiers poured in behind them. With the searchlights and sonic cannons in position, the soldiers all chambered their weapons. Some standing, some kneeling, they all aimed their rifles at the lone figure standing before them.

War.

WAS ABOUT TO BEGIN.

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

If you’re interested, you can read advanced Chapters:

https://p-atreon.com/dragonnx

~# Bonus Chapter every 300PS!!

~# If you like the story, please leave a review.

~# Add to Library!