Chapter 99 - Finding The Savage Land

Lily's journey to the Savage Land was arduous but necessary. She believed it would be the best place to grow safely. Not only was it isolated, but it also provided her with a wide range of different creatures to devour. 

She moved with a sense of urgency as she could feel the need to evolve, pulling at her very being— her skin itself felt unsuitable for her. Of course, she didn't solely focus on traveling in such a vast ocean.

Lily lacked many aquatic creatures that she had devoured. As such, she stopped a few times along the way to devour animals she found near the surface of the water—sometimes, she would even dive a bit deeper under the water to eat larger prey.

In this way, her journey was slightly longer than needed, but she gained a variety of new animal DNA and abilities, some of which even helped her increase her travel speed.

After traveling relentlessly for weeks, Lily finally reached the land where the entrance to the Savage Lands was said to be located. The exact entrance wasn't known to her, but she had a rough idea of where it should be, and given her capabilities, she was sure that finding it was a matter of time.

The cold had little effect on her, thanks to the variety of creatures she had devoured—the most recent ones actually adding a lot to her cold resistance.

This allowed her to search around unbothered for a longer period of time, and eventually, after a few days of searching with all her abilities and swarm units combined, she found the isolated entrance.

The entrance to the Savage Land was actually an isolated cave entrance that led into a wide and complex network of tunnels underground, eventually leading into the Savage Land.

Many believed that the Savage Land was actually underneath Antarctica, while others believed it was within an isolated space with an entrance on Antarctica. However, details pertaining to the Savage Land in the Marvel Universe have always been vague and constantly changing.

But today, Lily finally learned what it truly was— both.

The Savage Land was located underneath Antarctica, but the space it was located in held traits that showed that it was an isolated space— a bubble of sorts that made it much larger within than it would be outside.

Upon entering the lands, the first thing that met her eyes was the blinding sunlight—something that shouldn't be possible this deep under the surface. This further confirmed to her that this space wasn't normal.

As the sunlight subsided and her eyes quickly adjusted to the blinding light, she stared at the scenery before her.

The sight of the prehistoric landscape filled her with awe and relief. Here, surrounded by ancient flora and fauna that she had never seen in her entire life, she could finally prepare for her evolution.

She didn't have time to enjoy the sight as she wanted to evolve first— afterward, she would fully enjoy this new place.

Lily wasted no time. She chose a secluded spot near the entrance of the Savage Lands and the border of the Jungle, where she would be shielded from prying eyes and potential threats. 

Her Hive Units immediately got to work digging within the earth below her in order to make a nest— constructing a sturdy and well-camouflaged nest. 

The combination of earth manipulation and the Hive Units' capabilities was enough to quickly create a complex system of tunnels and chambers that she could use as a temporary nest for her evolution and maybe even a permanent nest for her stay here.

One thing to note was the lack of snow when digging— the entire ground was normal dirt and soil, without the ice and snow that should be found below Antarctica.

Once the nest was complete, Lily settled into the heart of it, feeling the 

pressing need to begin her hibernation. Before beginning, however, she created a few additional units to defend her in the case of an attack when she was in her most vulnerable state.

A total of 250 new attack units were created— she spared no efforts in making sure her safety was ensured.

Finally, she allowed herself to relax, her body instinctively entering a cocooning process— black goo gushing out of her very flesh and skin, much like when she made the Hive Units, but this time it instead formed a fleshy cocoon around her entire body. 

Her consciousness began to fade from her main body, but she could still feel her connection to the rest of the Hive Units, just barely weakened— surrendering to the evolutionary changes that were about to take place.

Meanwhile, back in the world outside the Savage Land, Tony Stark was obsessing over the mysterious woman he had encountered. He had replayed the footage multiple times, marveling at her abilities and the ease with which she had handled the mutants. 

The curiosity gnawed at him, and he was determined to uncover her identity.

"Jarvis, any luck with the databases?" 

Tony asked, his voice tinged with frustration as he paced the room.

"Unfortunately, Sir, I have not found any matches in known databases even after expanding the search range." 

Jarvis replied. 

"However, I have compiled a detailed analysis of her abilities based on the recorded footage. Would you like me to display it?"

"Yes, show it!"

Tony stopped his pacing and leaned back in his chair, staring at the holographic display of Lily's figure. Javis had isolated just her figure and removed everything else on the battlefield, so she was the only feature in the film. 

"She's not a known mutant, and her abilities are unlike anything we've documented. This is going to bug me."

He sighed, running a hand through his hair. 

"Keep digging, Jarvis. There has to be something we're missing; look for any possible mutants with similar abilities. Elemental capabilities aren't uncommon in mutants, but this many at once aren't normal."

As days turned into weeks, Tony found himself increasingly preoccupied with his mysterious helper. He couldn't shake the feeling that their paths would cross again and wanted to be prepared for that eventuality.

Back in the Savage Land, time moved differently for Lily. Her cocooned state rendered her unaware of the passage of time, and even if she was still connected to the rest of the Hive, there was a sense of blur when controlling them. 

Her body underwent profound changes, with her cells restructuring and enhancing her abilities. Her mind itself underwent changes that could only be described as unnatural. 

The process was both painful and transformative, pushing her to the brink of her limits. Thankfully, in her unconscious state, she felt nothing.

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I'm back, somewhat. I will be posting once more, however, life is still somewhat not going well for me, with a lot of things going on that will take my time here and there.

But having seen all the comments and votes this novel gets even though no new chapter has been posted in a long time, I would feel bad no writing something for it. As such I have decided to resume writing but I won't post too often.

Once a week, or even twice, is what I will try to do.

Regardless, thanks for all the comments and votes, and I hope you enjoy it.