With minimal effort, Richard locked onto Phastos's exact location.
From outward appearances, Eternals were indistinguishable from ordinary humans. To telepathic perception, however, their mental signatures exhibited unmistakable differences.
Whether in comics or films, the Eternals had been created by the Celestials. But important distinctions existed between versions. In the comics, they represented naturally born lifeforms. In the cinematic interpretation, they were "artificial humans" created by the Celestial Arishem in the World Forge—not natural beings.
Although their technological underpinnings differed radically from Earth science, the movie Eternals were, in principle, synthetic beings.
Having pinpointed Phastos's location, Richard prepared to teleport and eliminate the Eternal who had provoked such extreme antipathy. At that precise moment, the system issued a new task.
[Mission: Superboy-Prime]
[Mission content: Kill all Eternal members on Earth, current progress: 0/10]
[Mission Reward: Kryptonian Physique]
[Task time limit: 1 month]
When the notification appeared, Richard's expression shifted from surprise to satisfaction.
Regardless of the system's directive, he had already decided against allowing the Eternals to continue their existence. The system's offered reward—Kryptonian physique—only sweetened his resolve.
Physical attributes among Kryptonians were not uniform. Superboy-Prime's magical resistance significantly exceeded that of other Kryptonians. The only factors that could affect him were red sun radiation and kryptonite from Earth-Prime. Even then, Superboy-Prime demonstrated greater resilience to these weaknesses than other Kryptonians.
Beyond possessing all of Superman's abilities, Superboy-Prime exhibited even greater raw power. Like Superman, he could continuously absorb yellow sun energy (or similar stellar radiation) to increase his strength.
Though less renowned than Superman, Superboy-Prime matched or exceeded the Man of Steel in potential and might. Of course, with Superman as the protagonist of most narratives, Superboy-Prime's moments of glory were comparatively limited. Nevertheless, his formidable nature remained beyond question.
Eliminating ten Eternals to acquire Superboy-Prime's Kryptonian physique? By any standard, this qualified as an exceptional mission.
I love this mission!
After acknowledging his good fortune, Richard dismissed the task panel visible only to him.
Teleportation!
Without hesitation, he vanished instantly.
Detroit
Middle-Class Neighborhood
Wearing glasses and casual attire, Phastos was engaged in a football game with his adopted son Jack on the front lawn of their suburban home. His husband Phil was in the kitchen preparing lunch.
As Phastos smiled fondly at Jack and gently tossed the football to the boy, Richard materialized before them like an apparition.
Richard Wesley?
Both Phastos and Jack registered identical expressions of astonishment.
"King of Mutants?" Jack exclaimed, excitement overtaking his initial surprise. "You're Richard Wesley, the King of Mutants!"
Richard ignored the child's enthusiasm, summoning the Masamune in a fluid motion. Raising the legendary blade, he pointed its tip directly at Phastos.
Recognizing the imminent danger, Phastos's demeanor instantly shifted. Before he could speak a single word, Richard struck.
Octoslash!
Moving with ghostlike speed, Richard closed the distance to Phastos and executed a lightning-swift series of strikes with Masamune.
Had his target been any other Eternal, Richard might have allowed them final words. Phastos was the exception. Upon seeing him, Richard's murderous intent had peaked.
Compared to ordinary humans and most mutants, Phastos possessed considerable power as an Eternal. Though not specialized in close combat, his extraordinary inventive capability allowed him to channel cosmic energy into various advanced technological weapons and tools.
Against Richard, however, such advantages meant nothing—Phastos might as well have been an ordinary human.
Chi-chi-chi-chi-chi-chi...
Masamune passed through Phastos's body with the same effortlessness as a hot knife through butter. Moving at superhuman speed, Richard executed the Octoslash, reducing Phastos to dozens of pieces in the blink of an eye.
Jack's expression transformed from excitement to horrified disbelief as he watched his father being dismembered.
After dispatching Phastos with the Octoslash, Richard bypassed the Plunder ability in favor of his Omega-level Matter Manipulation. Despite Phastos's extraordinary capabilities, Richard felt no desire to appropriate them.
Matter decomposition!
As Jack watched in shock, Phastos's remains dissipated like evaporating mist. Within seconds, the Eternal had completely vanished—leaving only blood spatter as evidence of his existence.
Having eliminated the source of his intense displeasure, Richard turned toward the petrified child before teleporting away. Though he harbored deep antipathy toward Phastos, Richard wasn't sufficiently misanthropic to harm an innocent child.
As Richard vanished, the terrified Jack collapsed in tears.
New York
Silver Manor
Seated in his study, Richard opened the task panel to check his progress.
[Mission content: Kill all Eternal members on Earth, current progress: 1/10]
Although the cinematic Eternals were artificial beings created by Arishem in the World Forge, they weren't truly immortal. Even with backup bodies available in the World Forge, any reconstituted version would no longer be the original entity.
Closing the task panel, Richard began mentally cataloging the locations of the remaining Eternals:
Sersi and Sprite in London
Ajak in South Dakota
Kingo in India
Makkari aboard the Eternals' vessel
Gilgamesh and Thena in Australia
Druig in the Amazon rainforest
Ikaris, the Superman-like figure, with no fixed abode—constantly moving worldwide
After brief consideration, Richard formulated his hunting strategy:
First, travel to South Dakota to eliminate Ajak, the Eternals' leader possessing healing abilities.
Next, proceed south to the Amazon and dispatch Druig, master of mind control.
Then continue to Australia to neutralize Gilgamesh, possessor of super strength, and Thena, who could materialize energy weapons.
From there, journey to Bollywood, India, to eliminate Kingo, who could project energy blasts from his limbs.
Afterward, locate the Eternals' vessel in Iraq to deal with Makkari, the speedster residing within.
Then proceed to London to eliminate Sersi, manipulator of matter, and Sprite, creator of illusions.
As for Ikaris, the Superman-like Eternal, if not encountered during the hunt, he would be saved for last. Should they cross paths earlier, Richard would eliminate him opportunistically.
Having established his plan, Richard left his study without delay to speak with Emma Frost. After briefly informing the White Queen of his intentions, he teleported from Silver Manor.
Although the mission's time constraint allowed for a more leisurely approach—he could have departed the following day or even waited several days—Richard preferred to avoid complications. News of Phastos's death might prompt the remaining Eternals to abandon their known residences. Additionally, acquiring the Kryptonian physique sooner rather than later was a powerful motivator.
South Dakota, situated in the American Midwest, lay nearly 1,800 miles—almost 3,000 kilometers—from New York. While considerable for most travelers, this distance posed no challenge to Richard's teleportation ability.
Executing four consecutive teleportations, he traversed the distance in approximately twenty seconds.
Though aware that Ajak lived alone in South Dakota, Richard lacked her precise location within the state. This posed no significant obstacle. As with Phastos, he needed only to employ his telepathy to detect anomalous mental patterns.
His current telepathic range extended to 800 kilometers—essentially a circular area with Richard at its center. While expanded to maximum range, this perception lacked fine detail and precision. Nevertheless, it would suffice to locate Ajak.
Without hesitation, Richard, hovering thousands of meters above ground level, extended his telepathic awareness to its maximum radius.
As his perceptive field expanded, he detected an extraordinary mental signature emanating from South Dakota's western plains. The pattern matched the distinctive frequency he'd observed in Phastos—neither human nor mutant, but something altogether different.
Found you!
Having locked onto the anomalous mental signature, Richard teleported without delay.
In an instant, he materialized high above his target, gazing down at an isolated house situated on the vast plains. No other structures were visible for miles around.
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New Fanfic
Marvel x Star Wars: Avengers in the Clone Wars
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