A healing factor combined with a vibranium body made Luke Cage absurdly durable.
But durability alone wasn't enough.
Being impossible to kill had limited value if you couldn't hit hard enough to matter.
So Drex added one more mutant gene.
Originally, the super-strength gene had been fairly diocre. Under normal circumstances, it would've granted its host maybe ten tons of lifting power.
After Drex modified it, however, the gene beca vastly more potent.
The downside was obvious.
It offered no defensive enhancent whatsoever.
Still, once the upgraded strength gene rged with Luke Cage's existing mutations, the results beca monstrous.
Luke's physical strength surpassed one hundred tons.
At that point, he could directly trade blows with Red Hulk, the Hulk, or even Super Abomination.
More importantly, his body barely changed in size.
Even after transforming into living vibranium, he remained agile because vibranium was significantly lighter than most tals at equivalent volu.
"Drex."
Morgan quietly slipped into the laboratory while Drex was reviewing data.
He glanced toward her.
"Sothing wrong?"
Morgan hesitated awkwardly.
"If... if I can never use Soul Magic again... what happens to ?"
Ever since the incident, she'd been painfully aware of one thing:
The only reason she had ever gotten close to Drex Valen at all was because of the explosion and the dangerous magic inside her.
Otherwise, soone like her never would've crossed paths with soone like him.
There were countless beautiful won and brilliant girls trying to get close to Drex every day.
Morgan didn't have Pietro's carefree confidence.
And unlike Wanda, who worked tirelessly without overthinking things, Morgan constantly worried about becoming unnecessary.
Drex studied her for a mont before answering.
"Then you find other ways to help."
He spoke casually, like the answer was obvious.
"You could study cellular biology, genetic engineering, high-energy physics, astrophysics, spatial physics, theoretical physics, energy systems..."
He shrugged lightly.
"I'm desperately short on people in those fields."
Drex could see straight through her anxiety.
Pietro was reckless and uncomplicated.
Wanda was diligent and focused.
Morgan, anwhile, clearly wanted shortcuts.
Jessica Campbell had reacted differently from all of them. After losing her family and suddenly finding herself alone in the world, she'd thrown herself into studying with almost desperate determination.
She genuinely believed education could change her future.
Which was ironic, considering she was only a short distance away from becoming a heavily nerfed version of Supergirl.
Morgan, on the other hand, felt a headache forming just listening to Drex list scientific disciplines she barely understood.
The private academy he'd established offered virtually every subject imaginable for students willing to learn.
Still...
"I'll work hard," she said quickly.
Then she fled the room like she was escaping a burning building.
Drex watched her leave, fully aware of the thoughts spiraling through her head.
Morgan wandered the streets afterward feeling strangely miserable.
Yes, she was hopelessly attracted to Drex Valen's appearance.
That much was obvious even to herself.
But Drex wasn't just handso.
He was a genius centuries ahead of the modern world.
Soone like him probably needed people who could actually understand the things he talked about.
I'm way too stupid for soone like that...
As she walked through a quieter section of the street, a voice suddenly echoed beside her.
"Do you want him to love you?"
Morgan froze.
Ever since the Soul Magic incident, she understood this world contained far more than science.
Ghosts.
Dinsions.
Things far worse than ghosts.
Slowly, she turned around.
A shadow-like figure composed of dark blue and black light stood behind her.
Its form remained blurry and unstable, yet the mont Morgan looked at it, a clear image appeared instinctively in her mind.
An enormous demon towering like a mountain.
Four crystal-blue horns rose from its head.
Its entire body was covered in massive scales, each one larger than Morgan herself.
The creature's face looked exactly like the kind of devil people painted in religious nightmares.
Morgan imdiately tried to run.
Her body refused to move.
"Do not fear , Morgan," the entity said gently. "I am your father."
That only terrified her more.
The Ancient One had already warned her that one of her parents likely wasn't human, and that her existence might be tied to an extradinsional entity seeking access to Earth.
Morgan didn't fully understand what a dinsional god truly was.
But she understood enough to know they were bad news.
Then the shadows in front of her shifted.
An image appeared.
Drex.
Inside a gravity chamber.
Sweat glistened across his bare chest and sharply defined abdominal muscles as he trained under crushing force.
Morgan's eyes widened instantly.
"Morgan," the entity repeated patiently, "do you want his love?"
The dinsional god sounded almost fatherly.
Manipulative.
Gentle.
Careful.
"You're trying to tempt !"
Morgan swallowed hard, desperately trying to look away.
"No," the entity replied softly. "I am your father. I understand your thoughts better than anyone. I simply want my daughter to live happily."
Morgan shut her eyes tightly in refusal.
The entity continued speaking anyway.
"Did you notice the woman beside him? His secretary. Urd."
The shadows shifted again.
This ti, Morgan saw Urd bathing.
Morgan instantly suffered complete psychological defeat.
From appearance to confidence to capability, she felt utterly outclassed.
"There's another problem," the dinsional god continued calmly. "From what I've observed, Drex Valen prefers mature won."
Its voice beca quieter.
"How many years do you think you'll need before you can compete?"
Then suddenly, the entity paused.
Apparently, the Ancient One had begun noticing its presence.
The dinsional god withdrew imdiately.
"I'll give you a few days to think about it, Morgan."
The shadows vanished.
Morgan collapsed onto the pavent, breathing hard.
Several minutes passed before she finally managed to stand again.
She ran straight toward Blade Tech Industries.
She needed to tell Drex what had happened.
Needed to warn him.
But when she reached the upper floors, she saw him talking with Urd.
Morgan couldn't hear the conversation.
But the sight alone stopped her cold.
Urd stood beside Drex naturally, effortlessly.
Beautiful.
Capable.
Confident.
The two of them laughed together while discussing sothing Morgan couldn't begin to understand.
Her feet refused to move.
For the first ti in her life, Morgan truly understood jealousy.
Deep inside her heart, sothing quietly began to grow.
Far away, the dinsional entity smiled in satisfaction as its connection to Earth's dinsion strengthened slightly.
Negative emotions were nourishnt to beings like it.
Fear.
Envy.
Desire.
Resentnt.
Humans without darkness simply didn't exist.
In the end, Morgan never told Drex about the encounter.
If I don't have power...
Then I'll never be able to stay close to him...
Later, Wanda noticed almost imdiately that sothing felt wrong.
"Morgan?" Wanda asked gently. "Are you okay?"
Morgan forced a smile.
"I'm fine, Wanda."
She could tell Wanda genuinely cared about her.
Which only made the guilt worse.
Morgan didn't want to drag her into this.
Wanda was too good for that.
"If sothing's bothering you, tell ," Wanda said sincerely. "We're friends, rember?"
Wanda treasured the peaceful life they'd found together.
Morgan.
Jessica.
For the first ti in a long while, she actually felt happy.
Morgan laughed softly.
"Don't worry. If things get bad, I'll annoy you to death asking for help."
But behind the smile, she had already made a decision.
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