Tonight’s run-in with the dumb thief was bound to be just a minor interlude.
After Jetfire cut off the man mid-action, he swung open both car doors at once and drove himself over to stop right in front of Lorien. Smart, isn’t he?
Once they got in, Lorien hit the gas and the Ferrari roared toward the seaside market.
"Lorien, that idiot was hilarious! He barely got halfway through his sentence before Jetfire smacked him flying with a car door!"
Wanda was still laughing at the mory. She pulled out her phone and sent the video to Natasha.
As he drove, Lorien tossed her a few stats.
"Wanda, here’s sothing you should know. The United States has 5% of the world’s prisons... and 25% of the world’s criminals. So this isn’t just the city of capital—it’s the city of cri. Even in New York, Gwen’s parents are strict with her. She even has a curfew."
After hearing this, Wanda felt like she’d learned sothing new and had a different impression of the U.S. If Lorien had to sum it up in one phrase, it would be: "Chaotic but orderly." Weird, but true.
Then Wanda suddenly paused and looked over at him.
"Lorien, how do you know Gwen has a curfew? Have you t her parents?"
Lorien: ...
Won. How do they always zero in on the most random details?
He sighed and answered.
"After you left the Ferris wheel last ti, it was almost Gwen’s curfew. I rushed her ho and ran into her dad. But really, how did we even run out of ti that day? Hmm? Miss Witch?"
Wanda’s cheeks heated almost instantly.
Right... after they’d taken down the Lizardn, she was the one who dragged Lorien off to sneak away for fun. Only after they were done did they go back for Gwen—just in ti for her to barely make it ho on the dot.
So technically... it was all her fault.
When she realized this, it felt like she’d tripped herself up.
"I... I..."
She tried to co up with an excuse, but nothing seed to fit. She thought for a long ti and still ca up empty.
Lorien just stood there with a quiet smile. He was waiting. Waiting to see what she’d say. That’s what you get for throwing the first punch.
By now, Lorien’s Ferrari had reached the edge of the seaside district. Any farther in and they’d hit traffic, so he pulled over. Whether Wanda answered or not didn’t matter—he was only teasing.
But then—
"Splash~~~!"
A loud crash of water echoed from a distance.
"Boom—splash~~~!"
The sound of water slamming into the ground followed, along with the thud of sothing heavy landing.
"Ahhhhhh!"
"Monster! There’s a monster!"
"Run! A monster’s coming!"
Panic and screams erupted as people bolted.
Lorien: ?
Monster? He froze for a second. Running through his ntal list of Marvel creatures, none of them were actually called "monster." Wasn’t that a Pacific Rim or Ultraman thing? How did it show up in Marvel?
Wanda, who had just stepped out of the car, was just as stunned.
"Another crisis?"
The question made Lorien chuckle.
"Yes." He glanced at Wanda. "Why is it that most tis we go out, we run into so kind of crisis? Co on, Miss Witch, tell —are these all your doing?"
He asked it in a flat tone, but anyone could tell he was joking.
Wanda rolled her eyes in mock annoyance and raised a small fist.
"Let’s just go check it out. Stop trying to fra here—once we’re back, you’ll get what’s coming to you."
"Let’s go."
Lorien nodded, then patted the side of the Ferrari.
"Wait until the street’s clear, then drive up slowly."
Jetfire flashed his headlights twice in acknowledgnt.
Lorien led Wanda toward the seaside market. Inside, the crowd was surging outward in a panic. In seconds, the place was jam-packed, bodies pressed together so tightly that a stampede could break out at any mont.
They couldn’t even squeeze their way in.
Seeing this, Lorien turned to her.
"Ti to put your Twelve Talismans to use in a real situation. Let’s float to the rooftops and get there faster."
Wanda blinked, then realized she still had her gear with her. With a thought, she cast the spell.
"Rooster Talisman."
She grabbed Lorien’s hand, and together they lifted off, floating up to a nearby rooftop.
"It’s Scarlet Witch!"
"Scarlet Witch is here!"
"Hurry, she can protect us!"
At night, Wanda wasn’t that noticeable—but the mont she took to the air, everything changed. After all, who else could fly? She was recognized instantly, and the reaction was imdiate.
The crowd grew even more chaotic. So people stopped running altogether, while others pushed and shoved to get closer, packing themselves beneath the building they’d landed on.
"..."
Lorien could only sigh. He couldn’t really bla them—faced with danger, people would instinctively run toward sowhere that felt safe. And right now, Scarlet Witch’s popularity was sky-high. Naturally, they would all try to get near her.
Still, this wouldn’t do.
He looked at Wanda, then gestured toward the crowd.
"Alright, new challenge. Use your magic to divide them into single-person evacuation lanes. This street’s wide enough for seven people to run side by side. Now split it into seven separate escape routes, one person per lane."
Wanda nodded and rose into the air above the crowd. She held her hands in a gesture uniquely her own, and scarlet magical energy flared into existence. Pressing her hands toward the ground, she summoned six shimring barriers that shot up from the street, dividing it into seven narrow lanes.
Lorien floated over to her side, scanning the people below.
"If you want to live, just run straight to the end—you’ll be safe there."
He said nothing more, simply turned and patted Wanda on the shoulder.
"Let’s go."
She nodded, lowering her hands and following him. The energy powering those barriers would last for about half an hour—plenty of ti for everyone to evacuate.
Without the divisions, even a street this wide might not fit four people across, thanks to the crush of bodies and constant shoving. But with Wanda’s barriers in place, the flow of people nearly doubled in speed.
As Scarlet Witch and the man beside her departed, so in the crowd imdiately bolted toward the far end. Others shouted after them.
"No! Scarlet Witch! My goddess!"
"Fuck! Get out of the way! Run!"
"I don’t want to die! I don’t want to die!"
Hearing the chaos behind her, Wanda shook her head. Sure enough, the gap between ordinary people was huge. At a ti like this, anyone who could remain calm was already exceptional.
The two of them flew toward where the monster had appeared.
Bang! Bang bang! Boom!
As they neared the heart of the incident, Lorien and Wanda saw it clearly—a wolf-shaped beast, four ters tall, six ters long, standing on all fours.
It really was a monster. Not so bizarre alien species—an actual monster.
The mont Lorien saw it, he knew exactly what it was.
The Deviants.
The sworn enemies of the Eternals.
But how were they appearing this early?
Bang!
The Deviant was ripping through nearby buildings, using its sharp claws to tear apart walls in order to drag out the humans hiding inside.
Buzz—
Wanda made her move. She stretched out both hands, and scarlet energy wrapped around the Deviant, locking it in place. With a powerful swing of her arms—
"Roar~~~!"
Bang!
The Deviant was hurled away and slamd hard into the ground.
"Hoo..."
That throw had taken a toll. The creature weighed several tons, and tossing it like that burned through a lot of her strength.
Lorien gave her a light smack on the rear as a "punishnt," then switched to the tone of a teacher.
"When you’re dealing with sothing that big, don’t wrap it up completely. Focus your magic and strike."
He opened his palm, and condensed energy shaped itself into a fist, a hamr, then a long sword.
This was a more advanced application of magic and energy—a skill she needed to learn. Without focus, energy would scatter, and this foundation was crucial for mastering more complex magic later.
After throwing the Deviant, Wanda listened to his explanation and began trying to condense her Chaos Magic. Chaos Magic was vast and potent; with skill, its combat potential was imnse.
She first tried forming it into sharp blades, but failed.
"Why?" she asked, puzzled.
"Because your ntal focus and control aren’t strong enough." Lorien tapped her forehead. "You need better control. Keep practicing."
"...Alright."
She nodded in mild disappointnt, then tried shaping the energy into a fist.
Sure enough, when a massive scarlet fist materialized in the air, it ant she had succeeded. She looked at Lorien with delight—
Smack!
He gave her a firm swat on the rear.
"What are you staring at for? Hit the monster."
"Oh..."
Looking a bit wronged, Wanda turned back around and sent the floating fist crashing into the Deviant, which had just gotten to its feet.
Bang!
The impact rang out, and the Deviant let out a pained hiss as it staggered backward. That blow had landed squarely on its durable body—if it had been a normal person, they’d have been reduced to pulp.
"That felt good~!"
Excited, Wanda raised her fist again and unleashed another barrage.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Her wild, untrained punches forced the Deviant back again and again, unable to get close.
What could it do? Every ti it tried to charge forward, her remote-controlled fist sent it flying back.
An assassin can’t touch a mage—how infuriating.
By now, most of the crowd had already evacuated the market. In the distance, the headlights of a sports car flashed—it was Jetfire, slowly making its way in. Its fiery red fra slipped through the alleys, rising up on blade-like supports to clear the narrower gaps.
Wanda frowned.
"I can’t kill it, so why isn’t it running?"
Lorien glanced over. She was right. Despite the beating, the Deviant refused to retreat, as if dead set on fighting her to the end. That wasn’t normal—Deviants weren’t usually this stubborn.
Bang, bang! Bang, bang!
The sound of pounding footsteps ca from behind them. Lorien and Wanda turned to look—and there it was.
A second Deviant.
No wonder the first one hadn’t fled—it was drawing attention, giving the second a chance to move in.
With enemies closing in from both sides, Wanda’s composure faltered. The floating scarlet fist began to fade, its color paling.
Lorien reached out and patted her gently on the head.
"Don’t panic. Just focus on the one in front of you."
"Mm."
With Lorien’s reassurance, Wanda quickly steadied herself. She locked her attention on the Deviant ahead, completely ignoring the one closing in from behind.
Even as the sound of pounding footsteps grew louder, she had absolute faith in him.
Lorien didn’t so much as flinch. Creatures of this level weren’t worth him lifting a finger. No need to waste the effort.
"Jetfire—cut them all down."
"Woo~~~!"
Ding—ding—ping!
The mont Lorien gave the order, the sound of the Ferrari transforming erupted right beside them. Jetfire gunned the engine, the car’s nose lifting as it shot forward.
Mid-air, it rolled and shifted shape—landing in full combat form and charging straight for the Deviant.
Jetfire wasn’t one for words, but if it could speak, it would’ve roared: Stupid beast! Keep your hands off my boss!
The instant it hit the ground, it collided head-on with the oncoming Deviant.
No ti to even draw his sword—Jetfire simply clamped both hands around the creature’s head and started pounding away.
Bang!
A nine-ter-tall Transforr pumling a four-ter-tall Deviant—imagine the difference. The size gap was more than double. Even standing at full height, the Deviant couldn’t match Jetfire’s size.
Sure, its body was tough. But could it really compare to Jetfire’s steel fra?
Bang! Bang!
When Wanda glanced over in curiosity, she saw Jetfire already straddling the Deviant’s back, hamring it rcilessly.
Beside her, Lorien stood with his arms crossed, watching like he was at the movies—only this was a fully imrsive 3D experience.
"Lorien, I can’t kill this thing," Wanda said between breaths.
"It’s fine. That’s normal. We’ll have Jetfire finish it off later." He kept his eyes on the fight as he explained, "They’re Deviants—a rare species still hiding on Earth. Not many remain, but their physical strength is formidable."
"Each one here is about on par with the Abomination from a few years back."
The Abomination—Hulk’s old rival.
These Deviants weren’t any weaker. In fact, they were evenly matched, maybe even more skilled in combat. After all, they were creations of the Celestials.
"...Alright."
Her tone carried disappointnt. The fact she couldn’t finish the Deviant herself was the most frustrating part. She could, if she unleashed all her power—but it would level the entire district, leaving nothing but rubble.
In that case, letting the Deviant rampage a bit seed the lesser evil.
anwhile, Jetfire—still mounted on the Deviant—finally drew the long sword at his waist with a sharp ring.
In one clean motion, he drove the blade upward from beneath its neck, right to left. His left hand clamped onto the creature’s skull, his right hand pulling the blade through.
A twist, a lift—
Slash!
The wet rip of steel through flesh echoed as the sword erged from under the Deviant’s jaw.
Its body went limp instantly, collapsing in a heap. Jetfire held its head aloft, its bulging eyes and gaping mouth still twisted in a feral snarl—though now it was only for show.
With the kill complete, Jetfire sheathed his sword, carried the head over to Lorien, dropped to one knee, and presented it with both hands.
"Boss, target neutralized."
"What am I supposed to do with that? Toss it." Lorien jerked his chin toward the other side. "There’s still one more. Cut it down."
"Yes."
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