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Heart of the Universe

Waking up with a killer headache and hangover isn't exactly an unfamiliar feeling to our friend Damian Luciel. However, waking up in a universe where Tony Stark and Lex Luthor are business partners, well... that's a first. Thankfully, it seems our reluctant 'hero' was not abandoned by whatever cosmic entity thought it funny to drop him here. He's a mutant, and a powerful one at that. One with a direct connection to the... wait seriously? The HEART OF THE UNIVERSE!?! Are you kidding me!?!

Golden_Slime · Anime & Comics
Not enough ratings
23 Chs

Deals

I took a seat at the booth next to Fury, signaling to the sexy redhead bartender for my order.

"I'll take an Orange Soda." I said, looking back at Cassy who was still standing, eyeing the various 'employees' and waiting for a possible attack to come at any time.

"And she'll take a Grape Soda," I said, pointing to Cassy.

"Come to a bar for soda?" The person I was sure was Natalia Romanov said to me with a smirk.

"Nah, I come for a company. Sodas are just a bonus," I said half-flirting before turning my attention back to Nick Fury. "To what do I owe the pleasure of a visit from the director of S.H.I.E.L.D. itself?"

Nick Fury smiled for a moment, amused at something. "I think you already know why I'm here, but I'll humor you." Fury said, taking another swig of his drink.

"Damian Luciel. Son of Jackie and Linda Luciel. Age 15. Born in North General Hospital three weeks early. Middle of the class in terms of performance up until the fifth grade where suddenly, he began to perform in the top 5of his class, even making it into the advanced course in middle school and now in Highschool, has made it into the prestigious course of Midtown High under the exclusive Luciel Holdings Scholarship Program." He rattled off while pulling a file out of somewhere and placing it on the table.

I raised my eyebrow at this. "Good job, I guess? A government agent accessed my very public information." I said, rolling my eyes.

Fury smirked at this for just a moment before his face was back to its usual semi-stoic self. "That's just what the public knows about you. However, what I'm sure that they don't know is that you're the real CEO of Luciel Holdings, not miss Frost. They probably also don't know that you're a mutant."

This time I smiled. "That's more of what I was expecting. Yeah, I am." I commented. I wasn't going to hide the fact I was a mutant, I'd just hide the extent of my powers until I was fully ready to take center stage, so as to not overly complicate matters.

"That right? You're quick on the uptake, almost as though you were expecting me to say it." Fury said, leading me on a bit.

"No comment," I replied with a smile.

Fury gave a tired sigh. "Look, kid. We know about your ability to see into the future."

I gave him a wry smile. "Looks like I've been found out, huh? Thought you'd think I was a telepath." I lied through my teeth. Fury was clearly misunderstanding the nature of my powers.

"No, Miss Frost is the telepath. That much we know." Fury stated, giving a swig of his drink. "For the longest time, we'd thought she was using her mutant powers to control the minds of her peers and business associates to get ahead, but that still didn't explain the strange investments she'd make. Buying up startup after startup and turning them into a profiteering powerhouse, all under the suspiciously named Luciel Holdings."

"I thought it'd be funny if I were so obvious about the name," I commented.

Fury tilted his head to the side and nodded a bit. "True, it confused just about everyone. That's probably why the most frequent question asked of Miss Frost is why it was named that. She was prepping it for when you were ready to take control when you were older." He commented.

"Pretty much. Thought it'd blow everyone's mind that a child genuis was the one actually behind the scenes of the world's most wealthy company." I added.

"Can't argue with how freaked out everyone's going to be. The conspiracy theorists are already a problem now, you're going to create thousands more when this comes out." Fury speculated.

"So, I'm guessing you didn't come to me for some idle banter or wanting your fortunes to be read. What's up?" I asked as the Black Widow finally arrived with the Orange Soda and grape Sodas.

I looked up at her with a look of 'What took so long?' to which she smiled back tauntingly. "Had to go across the street to buy this at the store." She gave a brief explanation.

"Huh?" I gave an honest expression. "Thought since I only drink orange soda, you'd have prepped it for me before you arrived.

"We did, but we weren't expecting your little agent here to stay," Natalia said, gesturing to Cassy, who had finally sat beside me after I waved her over. She was currently sniffing her soda for any obvious smells of poison or other drugs.

I did a quick check myself, but other than a mild relaxant, probably to keep us from freaking out and causing a scene, there wasn't anything added. Fury noted that I paused briefly to look at my drink before drinking it and gave a look with his eyes to Natalia who also nodded. It seems they interpreted this as if it were a 'tell' when I used my powers for future reference.

"Cassy, it's fine. Enjoy." I said, taking a small sip and allowing the fizzy drink to dance along my tongue in all the right ways, leaving behind the taste of the highly processed artificial orange flavor that I loved so much.

"So, now that I'm all relaxed and whatnot, what do you really want?" I asked.

"I think you know, but I'll say it once for reference. We want you to work with us." He said.

"With, not for?" I asked, somewhat surprised by this.

"Indeed. Luciel Holdings has created some of the most advanced technology on the planet thanks to your visions, bringing together a group of some of the most intelligent people to work for you. The American Government already has a secret task force designated to monitor Miss Frost and many other nations are catching on. China and Russia have already caught on to the fact that she isn't the real head of the company and are searching for who is in order to blackmail her and you into working alongside them." He commented.

"Don't you answer to the U.N? Didn't you inform them of my existence already?" I asked.

Fury smirked. "As is my right as Director of S.H.I.E.L.D., I have decided to keep this information discretionary for the benefit of the council. Plausible deniability and all that." Fury smirked.

I smirked back. "That so?" I replied taking another sip. "So, what are you looking for specifically? I'm not Stark. We don't provide lethal arms."

"Technology mostly. Access to your R&D team in emergencies, and I'd like you to be an advisor to us to prevent any more catastrophes. By the way, thanks for the tip about the Twin Tower Terrorist Ring." Fury said, giving me a genuine thanks.

"No problem, however, there's a slight issue with your proposal," I said, taking another sip. "You forgot to tell me what I'd get out of it."

Fury sighed. "I know offering you money isn't going to phase you. What do you want?"

"A few things. In the future, a large number of superpowered individuals and hyper-advanced technology will be born. I used my pull in the company to bring in all the ones who went to Midtown, but there will be way more around the country and the globe. A lot of them will be villains and many will be heroes. It's going to be chaos, especially in big cities like New York." I took another sip, ignoring Cassy's look at me in wonder, and Natalia secretly recording my words. "When that happens, I want your support on something. A project I've been building towards."

"And what is that?" he asked, genuinely curious.

"To bring together a group of remarkable people, so that they can become something more..." I quoted, though he didn't know that I was quoting.

"You're making a team of superpowered individuals..." Fury asked, astonished.

"No, I'm not. I'm going to bring together a global network of them. An organization to train, aid, and protect heroes and their families. An organization to prevent disasters, cure diseases, and fight the battles that no one else can." I said, closing my eyes.

I was envisioning something like the Justice League or Avengers, but even better than them. Something that would get in on the ground floor and help young and struggling metahumans, keeping them from turning into evil people due to bad situations.

Fury looked at me with wide-open eyes in shock. He gave a satisfied 'humph' before smiling softly. "I had a similar idea actually... Its a deal." He said, putting his hand forward to shake.

I grasped it firmly and gave him a smile. "Its a pleasure to work with you."

"Likewise."

...

A man dressed in an All Black suit of armor stepped out of the shuttle as its cloaking mechanism disengaged. What awaited him was a precession of bald female warriors, all of whom carried spears. They came to attention as the man who was their future king passed them, walking towards the old man at the end of the hall.

"Father, I have returned." He said, crossing his arms and banging them against his chest as a sign of respect.

"Excellent work, my son. Did you find the thief and murderer there?" The old man, dressed in a formal-looking set of robes asked.

"Unfortunately not father, however, I have recovered several tons of Vibranium. This must have been the lion's share of the haul." The Black Panther said, sighing in slight regret.

The old man smiled softly and approached his son, placing a firm hand on his shoulder and shaking it slightly. "It is alright my son. This is still a great victory for Wakanda. Come, your sister Shuri has missed you."

"You mean she has missed the chance to mess with me?" The Black Panther sighed, while his father laughed, leading him away.

'Huh? This seems closer to the MCU than any comic I know of.' I thought as I followed the two inside the large palace.

Currently, I was invisible to the naked eye and all scanners, as I hadn't simply forgotten the attack on my facility. I was working on something extremely important in there, mixing unstable molecules and Proto-Adamantium together to see if I can't create a weave as light and maneuverable as spandex while giving full protection of the metal. I was making suits for Peter, MJ, and Gwen, along with some for the rest of us, just in case. The unstable molecules would allow us to change the design to be anything we'd want them to be while also being disguised as normal clothes so we were always ready for combat.

I followed the two of them for a while until they arrived at a laboratory that looked like it popped up right out of a sci-fi movie, with holograms and transparent display panels with lots of wonky data on it. I stopped following them when the three of them greeted Shuri and began their small talk. The other scientists vacated the lab to give them some privacy and even the warrior guard who was with them stepped out.

I decided now was the time to reveal myself, so I quickly isolated the space and dropped my cloak. Shuri was the first to see me and her eyes widened in response to my sudden arrival. To his credit, T'Challa didn't even need to be told something was amiss, as he instantly turned around and pounced at me before Shuri could even as a word. Unfortunately, I wasn't exactly amused with him beating all of my employees and guards black and blue over a mistake, so I didn't exactly play nice with him.

T'Challa froze in mid-air, a shocked look on his face before I slammed him hard into the ground. Not hard enough to break bones or permanently injure him, but enough that he'd be sore for a bit afterward.

"That's a rude way to treat your guest," I said mockingly as I turned toward T'Chaka, only to have to stop a fist swinging at my face in a similar manner. I was impressed at the spirit of T'Chaka to attack me so quickly despite being too old to be the current black panther.

Shuri had retreated to the end of the lab and equipped two handheld sonic cannons to her arms, pointing them at me, ready to fire.

"Who are you!?!" T'Chaka demanded, retreating after noticing his sneak-attack had failed and his son had recovered.

"Me? I'm the guy you stole from a few days ago. Remember the 15 tons of vibranium you stole?" I asked.

"Don't pretend you are in the correct here! That Vibranium was taken from Wakanda!" He barked back at me.

"Yeah- no. I created it myself with my powers." I said, snapping my fingers and creating a block of gold-vibranium alloy in the shape of a Bast statue in the middle of the room. It was a shiny silver color that gleamed golden in the light.

Shuri immediately dropped her weapons and pulled over a floating display, scanning the statue up and down quickly. T'Chaka and T'Challa were both shocked at my display but didn't let their guard down, though they sent worried glances toward Shuri.

"Impossible! This alloy has no impurities!" Shuri said with astonishment.

"What do you mean?" T'Challa asked.

"This statue is made of 85% Vibranium and 15% Gold. There are literally zero atoms of any other material in them, meaning he didn't use binding agents or salts in the process of casting them! As you know, brother, it's impossible for the outsiders to melt vibranium without these things, as we only recently discovered the method, even with generations of experts working on them!" Shuri continued to study the state in amazement, but I decided to burst her bubble.

"Anything's possible when existence itself is your plaything," I commented, creating smaller Bast Statues around the lab, all out of different alloys. One was a Vibranium Uru alloy, which, interestingly, made both metals weaker than stronger. Not by much, but it'd be noticeable to an expert.

I gave myself the reason why and shook my head. Apparently, the Uru I'd created was 'inert'. All Uru in existence needed to be forged in a specific way to grant it the strength I was thinking of. The magical forges of the dwarves imbued the metal with magical properties which was why it was so strong. What I had created was an alloy of processed Virbanium and unprocessed Uru ore, essentially.

T'Chaka looked confused at my power for a moment before lowing his guard. He probably figured there was no point in fighting me, especially when I showed how easily I could ragdoll them, though that didn't stop him from giving me a glare.

I smiled at him. "Think of these as a gift. I'm sure Bast wouldn't mind." I said, looking at the main statue which had a gleam of red light in its eye. Probably Bast herself gazing upon the situation in amusement.

T'Challa stepped before his father and lightly bowed. "Forgive me, for I have committed a grave crime against your people!" He said "The attack was all my idea. I was the one who attacked your guards and stole your Vibranium. Please show mercy upon my family and my land!"

I gave a tired sigh at this. "You know, I really don't care too much. I've already rewritten the event as though it didn't happen in the minds of everyone outside of this room. I just wanted to take the opportunity to contact your lot. I've got a business proposal for you." I said, showing I wasn't going to go all old testament on Wakanda because T'Challa and his intelligence team got their information wrong.

T'Challa stood up straight and nodded, retreating behind his father so that he could negotiate. Even Shuri stopped analyzing all of the amazing alloys as a sign she too was curious about my proposal.

"In a few years' time, the world is going to change forever. It may not be as earth-shattering to you, especially in this isolationist country, but the demand for Vibranium is going to skyrocket, as new technologies that people could only barely dream of become reality." I explained.

"Are you referring to entities like the American Super Man?" T'Chaka asked.

"Like him, yes, but not many will be as powerful. In the coming chaos, attacks on Wakanda will increase, as more of your precious metal will be needed by outside forces."

"That is what the Black Panther is for." T'Challa commented.

"Yes, but you are still only one man. A superhuman, yes, but still alone. However, you don't have to be." I stated.

"Are you proposing an alliance?" Shuri asked

"Something to that effect. In actuality, what I need is your country's support. You are the only country I can trust with a space program, correct?" I asked.

"Does someone like you really need to worry about putting things in space?" Shuri asked with a little doubt in her voice.

"No, but the same reason I don't snap my fingers and cure every disease on the planet is the same one as to why I need a trustworthy space program," I commented.

"And what will you give us in exchange?" T'Chaka asked.

I snapped my fingers and an unconscious Ulysses Klaue fell to the floor in front of us. "You'll find all of the vibranium stolen by him and others on the landing pad outside. I excluded anything made with Vibranium that wasn't stolen, like Captain America's Shield, but other than that and a few trinkets, you've gained your monopoly on the metal back." I said

T'Chaka and T'Challa both stared in wonder at the unconscious Ulysses Klaue for a moment before looking back at me. "It is done!" T'Chaka stated without hesitation.

I smiled. "Good. I need to head back now, but I'll be back. If you want to contact me again, give me a call." I said and vanished. In my place, I left a small business card with my phone number and Emma's phone number.

As I appeared back in my room I had a sudden thought. "Oh yeah, I'll need to tell Emma to expect their call and about S.H.I.E.L.D. huh? Eh, I'll do it later."

He did not do it later

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