Jean's POV
"I've got something to do. See you at the X-Mansion."
That was all she said. And then she left—Hela, a goddess draped in silence and storm—walking away with my body, leaving me behind in the Astral Plane like a discarded thought.
I was too stunned to speak. Questions hung in the air like dust motes, unasked and unanswered.
What just happened?
Not only had I lent my body willingly—sworn loyalty, even, to a friend—I witnessed something incomprehensible. A divine conflict older than any war I've ever studied. The kind of confrontation that belongs in lost scripture or myths whispered in caves. And when it was over—before I could ask anything—she left me. Alone.
Just a spirit drifting in the wake of catastrophe.
My thoughts raced in broken loops. I wasn't the only one thrown off balance—Magneto, the X-Men, even the two SHIELD agents… all silent, all shaken. For one suspended breath, they even forgot Scott.
And I didn't remind them.
Not because I didn't care—I did, more than anything—but because I couldn't. In this form, words don't carry.
This wasn't the first time I'd been in the Astral Plane. Hela and I had traveled the whole of New York—testing its limits, peeping, sometimes even laughing. It had felt like a private eternity shared between two souls. But now, in the absence of her presence, the silence is unbearable.
The stillness wraps around me like frost.
I trust her. I do. She'll return my body. But trust doesn't quiet the unease. It doesn't silence the ache of being severed. I never realized how human I still was until I found myself here without anyone to confide in.
And that number… 2,500 years. She said it so plainly. But what did she mean? Had she truly wandered like this—without form, without touch—for twenty-five centuries? Did Odin force her into the Astral Plane as punishment, her body locked away somewhere in a forgotten realm? Or was she entombed in isolation, alive but unreachable, for ages beyond reckoning?
Either answer chilled me.
I watched from above as Bobby tried to stay calm, as Hank—bruised and bloodied—did what he could to assess the damage. Warren, ever proud, winced through pain and still tried to stand. They were figuring out how to carry Scott when Natasha stepped forward, her voice calm, her hands sure. Clint followed suit—silent but focused.
They moved toward the Blackbird, where a med-kit waited. It wasn't meant for this kind of devastation, but it was all we had. A military evac was incoming—something prearranged in case of heavy casualties.
Ironically, their predictions had fallen short.
Only Scott and Warren were gravely wounded. Hank would recover. Natasha and Clint barely had a scratch. The others—those who had once stood beside us—were past the reach of medicine.
Not injured.
Gone.
Every time I turned to look, I saw them. Lifeless, still, impossibly quiet. Some human. Some mutant. All silenced—making it harder for me when I was recalling their last thought.
It should never have come to this. There was no glory in what happened today. Only grief.
No, I'm completely sure that even with the coming of gods into the light, it wouldn't be enough to stop the hatred humanity will feel toward us from today onward.
The question of who is responsible for this mess remains unanswered. But who am I to even dwell on it? In a week, I'll probably end up in Hel anyway.
I've sworn myself to Hela, and to be honest, I'm kind of curious about the kingdom she mentioned—even if it's not the Asgard she refers to.
As I was lost in thought, the military evac soon arrived. The soldiers looked deeply grief-stricken as they carried Scott away, though I could sense a hint of disgust—not toward him specifically, probably just toward all mutants in general.
What's strange is that none of the X-Men mentioned me—or rather, they're trying hard to avoid the subject entirely. I could see a hint of sadness and grief on everyone's face, as if I were… already dead, huh?
But I don't blame them. They don't know anything about the concept of the Astral Body, or how Hela took my physical body.
They're probably confused about whether I'm dead or alive—and whether it's Hela controlling my body while I'm trapped inside, trying to regain control, like in some movie.
Still, I managed to follow the military convoy—literally, as I matched its speed. I'm not bound by any physical laws here. The first time Hela showed me what I was capable of in this state, it felt incredible. Even now, it helps me forget my problems, if only for a moment.
They quickly evacuated Scott to a private ward. It was one of the best hospitals in New York, and apparently, the surgeon working on him is a talented doctor named Stephen Strange—though he gives me a strange vibe.
Along the way, I could see the odd looks Hank, Warren, Bobby, and the injured Scott were getting from the nurses, doctors, and even some patients—especially since I could observe everything clearly without being seen.
I stayed behind, curious about what they would say.
Nurse 1: "Are we really going to try and heal him after what the mutants did?"
Nurse 2: "Shhh! What if they hear you with one of their weird powers? That guy could freeze you on the spot."
Nurse 1: "Do you think they'd dare to do that here, with all the military around?"
Nurse 2 looked at Nurse 1 like she was a complete fool.
Nurse 2: "Mutants literally invaded a military base and took control of it by force. If they want to do something to you, do you really think a few soldiers could stop them? Oh Lord, please protect this ignorant fool."
She looked like she was joking, but as a psychologist, I'm 100% sure she wasn't. She was tense—very tense.
That little conversation probably reflects what's happening everywhere right now: people cursing mutants, others trying to calm them down by passing it off as a joke—even though they're clearly terrified. Until, one day, all that hate will explode.
So yeah, I think the best solution should be for mutants to leave Earth and just go to Hela's kingdom—wherever it is. I believe in her; since she said we wouldn't be discriminated against there, it will definitely be the case.
But back to the main topic, what is Hela doing with my body? Knowing her personality, I hope she isn't doing something crazy. ... ... ... Well, Hela was absolutely doing war crimes to the concept of physics using Jean's body. Not even Jean in her Phoenix Force emo-goth-godmode days would've tried this crap.
I mean, from barely knowing what a beaker was to casually crafting a sun like she's playing Kerbal Space Program on acid—girl's cooking up a star with Science™.
---
[Day Three Hundred Ninety-One: Reward – Kami's Lookout]
Still knee-deep in Archive Magic, Hela was projecting over reality like it owed her money. She didn't even realize how much time had passed until—beep—System: 'New reward unlocked!' ...
Hela's POV
Now this is what I call a loot drop worth waiting 391 days for. If I remember correctly, Kami's Lookout is that floating temple from Dragon Ball—basically Heaven's penthouse suite for overpowered bald guys and green aliens.
At first glance, it sounds meh. But then I remembered the true cheat code that comes with it: the Hyperbolic Time Chamber.
One day outside = one year inside. Literal time dilation crackhouse. If that's not a busted mechanic, I don't know what is.
It's like someone gave you a New Game+ button in real life. Only catch is, in OG Dragon Ball Z rules, you could only use it for two days ever, and only two people could be inside. But then Dragon Ball Super pulled a classic shonen retcon like, 'Screw the rules, we've got power creep!'
So yeah, I smashed that [Receive Reward] illusory button faster than Goku eats after a fight.
I looked up—and there it was. Towering above like it was trying to cosplay Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann levels of extra. So high, it was nearly touching the orbital space I planned to shove my homemade sun into. Truly, NASA who? I am the launch program.
Then came the absurdly long climb with zero stairs. Like, how the hell is someone supposed to ascend—on vibes alone? But hey, this is from the Dragon Ball universe, where walking on snake-shaped space highways and owning a stick that grows infinitely long is just another Tuesday. If Goku can yeet his way to Heaven, someone can probably do it riding a cloud.
Speaking of which—if this is the full set, where's the Senzu Bean farm? Don't play me, system. I better be getting that miracle weed. I need it for scientific reasons. And snacks.
I teleported up instantly because, y'know, floating is for peasants.
And wow… I might just move in. Like, screw everything I planned for my palace, this place has aesthetic. Ancient alien architecture with 'mystical Wi-Fi.' It screams evil scientist base with Feng Shui.
I wandered the halls like I was in a haunted MMO dungeon, and yup—this place slaps. There's the Pendulum Room, which in theory lets you send people's spirits to the past for training. Emphasis on "in theory," because this is the Marvel World. If you dare to play with time, then you are done for—unless you reach a level where you don't care about the laws of reality, of course.
There's also a teleporter hub—kind of like a bad Uber alternative to get people to Hel. Not as fast as the Space Stone or me just yeeting them there myself. Honestly, it's like giving a smartphone to a speedster: cool, but redundant.
And finally, the crown jewel—the Hyperbolic Time Chamber. That beautiful bugged-out pocket dimension where physics cry themselves to sleep and power levels mean nothing.
Honestly, the original function was stupidly simple: train longer, get swole. But then the writers kept adding "lore" to it because power creep hit the franchise like a Spirit Bomb.
This legit saves me so much trouble. I can now dump all my mad science crap here without risking imploding my own pocket dimension. I've got space for my artificial sun reactor, alien genome projects, and whatever else I need to make Hel livable for humans... even if they're just interns.
And hey, maybe—just maybe—like in the manga, the chamber door disappears after a day and I can just bust it open with Space Stone portals anytime I want. Who needs balance when you're a cosmic cheat code with god-tier DLCs?
...
Too tired when writing this, hope it was good and don't forget to vote or supporting us on Patreon:
patreon.com/CodeblackAmazed