GUARDIAN OF THE MARVEL REALM

The Black Bolt—King of the Inhumans—looked at the assembled members of Chaldea. Each one of them radiated extraordinary power and discipline. It was both reassuring and absurd to him that his own younger brother, Maximus, still believed he could wage a successful war and let the Inhumans conquer Earth.

It would be lunacy to allow him to continue unchecked. If not stopped, he would drag all of Attilan into ruin.

"These Strangers…" Shen He narrowed his gaze slightly, inspecting the group of rescued Inhumans from the Hydra facility. He studied their injuries, their wariness, and their lingering fear.

"Shiki, you stay here to protect them. Once Steve brings backup, I'll summon you again."

Many of these people were in visible distress, some clearly suffering from psychological trauma, others bearing physical injuries. Leaving them alone in this condition was unthinkable.

"What if someone tries to run off?" asked Ryōgi Shiki, folding her arms loosely, her long katana hanging at her side.

"No need to worry. They're not prisoners," Shen He replied calmly. "As long as no one takes them by force, they're free to leave."

He had already assessed the group. None of them posed any threat or held key intelligence—at least, not yet. With that, Shen He departed without hesitation.

"Understood." Shiki gave a short nod and shifted her weight slightly, ready to guard the strangers.

"Master, this direction," Jeanne d'Arc said softly, pointing toward the coastline. "I've seen Crystal. She's unconscious, on the shoreline of a nearby island. Lockjaw is with her—he appears injured."

"An island shoreline?" Shen He turned to Jarvis, who instantly pulled up a satellite map. There was indeed a small island in that direction—María Madre, an uninhabited patch of land roughly 140 square kilometers in size.

Of course, it had been secretly converted into a covert Hydra research site. Just the kind of place both S.H.I.E.L.D. and Hydra loved to use for "off-the-books" operations.

"If Lockjaw's injured…" Black Bolt signed in quick American Sign Language, "Then their teleportation may have been off-target."

"Then we'll need to split up further." Shen He nodded. He gestured for Jeanne to come to his side, and then addressed the others. "Alright. Nanzi, you take Violet and Black Bolt. Track down the Inhumans who were dispatched to hunt him. Shiki, stay here and maintain security. Once we've found and stabilized Crystal and Lockjaw, we'll rejoin you. Use comms if anything happens."

The others nodded in agreement. It was a tactical and practical division of labor.

"Jeanne, let's go."

Shen He wrapped an arm around Jeanne's waist, and the Chaldean armor flared to life, propelling them skyward like a sleek comet.

"You two, come with me." Qi Mu Nanzi's tone was cold, as she levitated the Maximoff twins with a twitch of her fingers. She could easily control them with her psychic powers—they were still unstable and potentially dangerous, especially Wanda.

Black Bolt turned and gave a quick, comforting explanation to the remaining Strangers in Attilan's standard sign dialect. Now that he was in allied territory, he would do everything possible to cooperate with their efforts.

Shiki leaned against a large tree trunk, her long katana loosely in hand, the blade still gleaming faintly from the last encounter. She kept silent, watching the strangers with her usual deadpan expression.

The Strangers—many of them recently freed from Hydra—looked at her with instinctive unease. There was something predatory about this beautiful, androgynous swordswoman. It didn't matter whether one was man or woman; the air around her screamed danger. And after the trauma they'd been through, danger was the last thing they wanted to provoke.

Twenty minutes passed in silence.

Suddenly, Shiki straightened. Her eyes locked onto a subtle fluctuation in the air, a flicker of light—blue teleportation energy.

And then, two men appeared in front of the Strangers.

"Hey!" one of them called out, grinning. "We're here to get you out! You're not alone—we're your people. You're coming home!"

"Lincoln?" someone among the rescued group whispered in shock.

Lincoln Campbell's face lit up as he recognized the man. "Wald? Thank God, you're alive." He rushed forward, hugging the man. "We saw your footage on that news feed. We thought you were—well, never mind. We've got to move."

"Hey—" Shiki's voice cut through the air like a blade.

Her expression was blank, but the danger was unmistakable as she approached.

Lincoln turned and finally noticed her—an elegant black-haired girl in traditional garb, carrying a katana. She was beautiful in an ethereal, frightening sort of way, like something carved from ice. Her eyes had the weight of a hundred deaths behind them.

He faltered immediately. "Th-that… I'm your ally. I mean, we're kin…"

"Kin?" Shiki interrupted sharply, her tone flat and disinterested. "Don't assume things."

Her long blade rang out in the air as she let it swing a little, producing a keening whistle.

"I can't let you take anyone without clearance."

Lincoln and Wald exchanged a glance. Lincoln looked toward Wald for support, but Wald only shook his head nervously, eyes wide with fear.

Lincoln swallowed and raised his voice. "Alright then… GORDON!"

A sudden burst of blue light appeared behind Shiki. Gordon, the eyeless teleporter of Afterlife, was making his move—trying to snatch her from behind.

But his hand touched nothing.

Shiki had already moved, not through powers, but sheer reflex. Her form flickered like a phantom as she reappeared to the side in a crouch, blade drawn. Her speed was inhuman.

And then—

Crack!

The hilt of her blade connected sharply with the base of Gordon's skull.

Gordon went limp and collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut. A cold silence fell over the group.

Shiki stood upright, adjusting her kimono skirt as though nothing had happened. Her blade gleamed in the sunlight as she turned toward Lincoln.

"What else you got?" she asked dryly. "Use it now. Or sit down."

"…I…" Lincoln summoned electricity to his palms. Lightning crackled and danced across his fingertips.

Then he blinked—and Shiki was gone.

The next moment, he felt a rush of air behind his head—her blade had stopped just shy of contact.

"I surrender!" he blurted out, both hands raised.

Fwoosh.

The air pressure eased, the blade's tip withdrew. Shiki's sigh was audible.

"Boring."

She turned, walked back to the tree, and resumed leaning against it as though none of it had happened.

The Strangers were silent. Even Lincoln was afraid to speak. He carefully dragged Gordon's unconscious body aside and checked his vitals—just a bump on the head. He'd live.

Still, both he and Gordon had been thoroughly neutralized.

Lincoln looked up at the girl again. This time, he noticed a subtle difference—she was smiling faintly, murmuring softly to herself. Talking to someone.

A distant voice came through her earpiece.

"Seriously? He had no eyes and could teleport?" Shen He's voice was amused. "Nice work, Shi. Those guys are from a hidden Inhuman faction on Earth—Afterlife. I was gonna go hunting for them later, but you just saved me the trip."