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"Ohh, and you can't refuse to fight because whenever someone declines to fight, a million people will die from his side." The horrified Crowd tried to shout and curse at the Beyonder, but they quickly found, they still couldn't speak.

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—— 3rd Person's P.O.V ——

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Even though the spectators felt despair like never before, it cannot be compared to what the Heroes standing in the arena were feeling.

The choices they were given are both horrifying.

Win or lose, their hands will be stained in the blood of countless lives.

They also realised that they didn't have a chance against this monster. He is something beyond their comprehension.

The only one who had different expressions was Steve who surprisingly didn't have a parallel self.

"I ain't playing this game, I'm fine with having a million lives on my shoulders. It's far better than to become the reason behind trillions of deaths." Suddenly Logan from 6161616 spoke, moving out from the lineup.

"Logan!" Professor X called him, but he didn't stop.

"It's alright Chuck, I have already killed thousands, and millions are much better for my conscience than countless lives once after this sick game ends," Logan replied.

"Yeah…I'm also out." Logan from 6161617 also followed his parallel self.

The Beyonder didn't say anything, but millions of people dying from both sides randomly made their faces turn pale, even both Logans grimaced watching the heads of 2 million people explode.

Many other heroes who also wanted to not fight changed their decision after watching

millions of heads popping like watermelons when they are placed in a hydraulic-press.

"Now, what to do with you two nuisances, let's test your immortality," Beyonder said in his usual playful tone.

"Aghh"x2, suddenly both Wolverine dropped down and started screaming from the sudden soul-burning pain.

The other heroes tried to stop the Beyonder, but to their horror, they couldn't even move, and can only look at their fellow heroes stopped moving after screaming for a few minutes.

"Not so immortal after all." The Beyonder commented in a bored tone, and then he destroyed the immortal bodies of the two dead Wolverine.

*Clap* "Now we can finally continue." His mood swings back to being playful. And after he finished speaking every contender was teleported out of the arena, leaving behind only him and the trapped Bryan inside the arena.

"Let's go too," The Beyonder said to Bryan whose glass prison started to shrink to 2x2 cubic meters, and then both of them teleported back to his personal Emperor's box.

Multiple floating screens suddenly popped up around the arena, and every habitat place inside the two Universes, letting every conscious life form watch their fate being decided.

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~Inside the waiting room of the Universe 6161616~

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The waiting was in chaos, after all, it hasn't been long since the Civil War ended, not to mention the Hulk's revenge.

The group of heroes were divided into four groups, with them being the Heroes who were with the Registration Act and those who were against it. The other two were neutral groups, those who didn't participate in the Civil War, like the X-Men, and the ones that didn't participate in the civil war.

The last group also had their own problems like the Hulk and the Mighty Thor who was enraged at Tony's group for making a clone of him.

"HEY!!!" Steve's loud voice sounded, stopping the chaotic atmosphere.

Everyone's eyes, and focus instantly turned to Steve who was standing on a table.

The heroes got confused seeing Steve alive, but in the end, they shrugged off his revival as the Beyonder's doing.

But some smart ones remembered not seeing any Steve on Universe 6161617 side.

"Susan, weren't you pregnant." Steve's sudden question startled Susan and made her yelp in surprise, but she still answered Steve, much to the chagrin of the listening heroes.

"I already had a beautiful boy, whom we named Franklyn," Susan answered, but seeing Captain not wrapping his head around the fact that she delivered so early, made Susan continue explaining.

"I was working inside the negative zone, as you know that one day in the real world is equal to eleven months inside the negative zone, and because of that I already gave birth." Susan stopped talking as her face suddenly turned pale.

"What happened?" Steve worriedly questioned Susan, seeing her face turning pale.

"My baby… I was inside the negative zone when I teleported here. My sweet boy should be alone inside the negative zones with only the nursing bots looking after him." Susan explains her worries, but Steve's face instead of showing any worried expression, showed a relieved one.

In his mind, he's thinking about what Bryan said about Franklyn. As long as they can prolong this competition for 20 days, Frankly should grow around 20, or some years old. And if Bryan is right about Franklyn, they can save both Universes.

Steve shook his head from his optimistic thoughts and focus back his attention on the crowd.

"We are too divided," Steve spoke to the surprised crowd which only surprised them further, at his sudden change of topic.

"If we want to make it out of this situation and win. We have to set aside our differences and work together." Steve continued speaking not minding their shocked thoughts.

His words received an immediate retort from his old friend, which also brought other listening heroes back from shocked thoughts.

"Yeah! Suppose we did work together, and win this madness, but then what? You do realise that even if we win, a Universe worth of lives will die, right." Tony asked in an overly sarcastic voice.

And before Steve could speak again, he continued. "And we don't know if the monster will even let winning Universe go." Tony's words immediately got many approvals from the listening heroes.

Steve waited for the audience to calm down before replying to Tony's word. " What you say is definitely possible, but we still need to move as one from here. If we lose and die, we will all die together. And if we win, or even both the Universes get destroyed, then I guess We'll be together in those As WELL!!!" Steve's started the explaining slowly, but it soon turned into an encouraging speech which lifted the spirits of some heroes specifically some younger ones.

Tony snorted again but didn't argue back, as he himself knew that working together would be far better than working in different groups, and even better with people who have a similar goal.

"Many of you saw me die a few weeks ago." Steve addressed the crowd after Tony didn't say anything more.

Steve continued after seeing the heroes nodding their heads. "But in fact, the body you saw wasn't my real body, instead a clone made by Bryan, the man trapped inside that glass cube." Steve paused for a second, letting the heroes process the information.

"Some of you also noticed that the other Universe didn't have a parallel me, if I have to guess he died in a similar situation since he had no Bryan to save him." Steve started speaking again, but his words made the crowd become confused, not knowing where Cap taking this.

"But Steve why are you telling us all this." Charles Xavier worded the question going through all the listener's heads, probably reading them.

"What I'm saying is Bryan is a very unique being, so unique that even that monster: The Beyonder became interested in him," Steve says, and continues after seeing no one questioning him.

"After Bryan saved me, he told me about all this happening before it even happened, and he also told me that we'll somehow make it through all this, although I don't know how." Steve didn't tell them about Franklyn Richards as he didn't want too many people to know, and if he wasn't sure that the Beyonder was too busy with Bryan to focus on their current conversation, he wouldn't have told them even that.

Steve winced when he thought the suffering of his friend might be going under that psychopath.

"And you believe that, if the Purple Eyes knew all this why didn't he leave this Universe," Tony questioned Steve.

"He couldn't, Bryan said when he entered the Universe, he was already in the eye of the Beyonder and would have been caught by him if he tried to leave," Steve explained.

"Really?" Tony asked again, not believing Steve or more like Bryan's words.

"Yes, he even told me that the Beyonder was behind the Civil War," Steve said, making a few eyes raise in surprise.

Steve saw their reaction and chuckled at remembering having the same reaction when Bryan told him all this, although he hid it behind his calm face.

"And that's not the only thing the Beyonder did, he was also behind the death of the Hulk's wife and child." Steve continued, his word arousing a reaction from the silently listening Bruce Banner.

Steve saw Bruce's reaction and immediately calm him down, which he was fortunately able to do.

"Did this Bryan guy give any advice?" It was Dr Strange who asked this question after Steve managed to calm Bruce.

Steve looks at the Sorcerer Supreme and observed him carefully.

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{AN: Go to my patr*on for extra 12 unedited chapter and 2 extra weakly updates on every Friday and Saturday.

Patr*n/41_Claws}

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