Drex Valen launched himself from the lunar surface and drifted through the vacuum of space.
Crossing above the Moon, he looked down at the magnificent blue planet below.
Then he frowned.
"Where's the Ultron wreckage?"
He scanned the lunar surface again.
Nothing.
The Adamantium-bodied Ultron drone Black Queen had thrown through the portal was nowhere to be found.
Before he could investigate further, Esdeath had already accelerated toward Earth.
Drex shook his head and followed.
Their biofields effortlessly blocked the lethal radiation of space. As he watched Esdeath flying ahead of him, her elegant figure silhouetted against the stars, he suddenly accelerated and wrapped an arm around her waist.
Esdeath looked mildly surprised.
Then she smiled.
She certainly wasn't going to object.
In fact, she was rather pleased by the initiative.
So ti later, their distraction finally ca to an end.
By the conclusion of it, Esdeath had completely lost interest in fighting anything.
She looked thoroughly satisfied and had no intention of moving.
Drex could only send her back through a portal.
As for himself...
That had barely counted as a warm-up.
So he continued toward Earth alone.
Regardless of where he'd arrived, the first priority was figuring out what kind of universe this was.
In a technologically advanced civilization, information could be gathered through networks and communications systems.
Primitive worlds were far more troubleso.
Closing his eyes, Drex extended his senses across the planet.
Instantly, an overwhelming torrent of information flooded his mind.
Then his eyes snapped open.
"What the hell...?"
The entire Earth felt wrong.
Completely wrong.
Countless malicious thoughts and corrupted emotions covered the planet like a cancer.
Everywhere he looked, humanity's collective aura had been stained black.
Rotten.
Putrid.
Foul.
Yet despite their differences, all those emotions carried the sa overwhelming impulse.
Hunger.
An endless, maddening hunger.
The countless impulses rged together, forming an invisible black haze that enveloped the entire planet.
To Kryptonian senses, Earth looked less like a living world and more like a terminally ill patient surrounded by the stench of decay.
At the sa ti, Drex detected powerful life signatures scattered across the globe.
Dozens.
Hundreds.
Many of them remarkably strong.
The largest concentration existed in North Arica.
More specifically...
New York.
One powerful presence after another crowded the city.
Drex stared in that direction.
"...Where exactly have I landed?"
He selected one of the signatures.
Then vanished.
A mont later, he reappeared above New York City.
Below him stood a figure wearing a red-and-black bodysuit.
Two swords were strapped across its back.
The creature sat crouched over a corpse, tearing chunks of flesh from a body that was still warm.
Rotting flesh hung from exposed portions of its body.
Maggots crawled through decayed skin.
The sight was revolting.
Drex stared.
The outfit looked familiar.
Very familiar.
Then a terrible realization hit him.
"No way..."
Below, the creature suddenly sniffed the air.
It tossed aside a handful of entrails and looked up.
A face covered in rotting flesh grinned back at him.
The zombie drew one of its swords.
Then used the blade to pick scraps of at from between its teeth.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! What do we have here?"
The voice was unmistakable.
"A fresh superhero?"
"What are you supposed to be?"
"Superman?"
"Captain Underpants?"
"..."
Drex said nothing.
The zombie tilted its head.
"Actually, I hope you're not Superman."
"Those guys are hard to bite."
At that point, Drex turned around and prepared to leave.
Then a blade flashed through the air.
A sword struck him.
And shattered instantly.
"AAAAAH!"
Zombie Deadpool froze.
"My sword!"
"My beautiful sword!"
He dropped to his knees and scooped up the broken fragnts with trembling hands.
After several seconds of dramatic screaming, he pointed accusingly at Drex.
"You owe !"
"We grew up together!"
"Fine, forget the sword."
"Just give ten pounds of your flesh."
He paused.
"One pound works too."
Drex stared at him expressionlessly.
Zombie Deadpool suddenly vanished.
Then reappeared atop a nearby building.
Another sword appeared in his hands.
Beneath his torn mask, his mouth stretched into an unnaturally wide grin.
"So hungry..."
"Co on."
"Let eat you."
"I promise I'll only take one bite."
Drex finally understood.
A very specific universe had co to mind.
And if he was right...
His luck was truly terrible.
Another sword slash ca.
Another blade shattered against his skin.
Zombie Deadpool stamped his feet in frustration.
"Buddy!"
"Just one bite!"
"I swear!"
"How about that tiny little thing between your legs?"
"The whole planet's full of zombies anyway."
"You aren't using it."
"You should donate it to a worthy cause."
"If it's juicy, even better!"
Drex's eye twitched.
Then another voice echoed through the city.
"Deadpool."
"You were trying to keep the al for yourself?"
Drex turned.
And saw them.
A crowd of superheroes.
Or rather...
A crowd of zombie superheroes.
Approaching from every direction.
On the streets below:
Black Panther, missing an entire leg, exposed bone protruding from the stump.
The Thing, his rocky body crumbling apart.
The Hulk, green flesh rotting from his fra.
Mystique, dragging herself forward with limp arms.
The Punisher, missing half his body yet sohow still smoking a cigar.
Wolverine, flesh hanging from his skeleton while six claws extended from his hands.
Behind them ca Cyclops.
Taskmaster.
Daredevil.
Gambit.
Hawkeye.
Invisible Woman.
Colossus.
Iron Fist.
Moon Knight.
Quicksilver.
Black Widow.
Blade.
Beast.
And many more.
The sky was even worse.
Spider-Man swung between buildings despite having most of his abdon ripped open.
Iron Man flew overhead with only the upper half of his body remaining.
Magneto floated through the air, jaws stretched wide in anticipation.
The Human Torch existed as little more than a burning skeleton.
Captain Marvel's body still retained its graceful shape, but beneath the costu there was nothing but decayed flesh.
Behind them ca even more.
Storm.
Cannonball.
Falcon.
Angel.
Iron Patriot.
Nighthawk.
Scarlet Witch.
Vision.
An army of undead heroes and villains.
Leading them all was a familiar figure.
Captain Arica.
Steve Rogers.
Half his skull was gone.
One eye bulged grotesquely from its socket.
Dark blood stained his yellowed teeth.
The zombie horde closed in.
Drex remained completely calm.
Running?
Against this?
Abraxas was one thing.
These people were another.
He slowly inhaled.
Then exhaled.
A single breath.
That was all.
The air exploded outward.
The shockwave expanded in every direction like a detonating bomb.
The city shook.
The zombie heroes and villains were swept away instantly.
Bodies disintegrated.
Flesh.
Bone.
tal.
Armor.
Weapons.
Everything shattered.
The expanding wave of air ripped through them like a cosmic hurricane passing through paper dolls.
Blood sprayed across nearby buildings.
Chunks of flesh painted the streets.
Fragnts of armor rained from the sky.
The city beca a grotesque canvas splashed with every imaginable color.
And in the center of it all...
Drex stood completely untouched.
...
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