Marvel: Empire of Power-Chapter 115 - 114: The Terrigen Deception, an Inhuman Awakening, and Attilan’s Gaze

The Kree orbital blockade of Earth, though temporarily disrupted by the Skrull intervention and Elias Thorne's surgical strikes in Siberia, solidified into a grim, suffocating reality. Kree warships maintained their menacing vigil, systematically scanning the planet, their intentions clear: full assessment, followed by subjugation. Admiral Varr-Gohl was a patient, ruthless commander, content to tighten the noose before delivering the killing blow. Global communications were still crippled for unshielded terrestrial networks, creating widespread panic and disarray among conventional governments. S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Soviet "Project Red Son" were in overdrive, desperately trying to develop countermeasures or understand the alien threat, unaware that Elias Thorne already possessed a significant head start.

Elias, his [Prime Essence Shard Reserve] now a potent [3.7/5.0] after the Siberian salvage, knew he couldn't break the Kree blockade with direct force alone, not yet. He needed to sow chaos, to create diversions on Earth that would preoccupy the Kree sensors and mask his own more audacious preparations for a true counter-offensive. He also needed to understand the Kree's ultimate objectives beyond mere conquest – what specifically were they scanning for?

Dr. Finch, cross-referencing the salvaged Kree data crystals with Namor's Atlantean archives and the esoteric texts recovered from Hydra's occult libraries, made a startling discovery. The Kree had a long, almost obsessive history of genetic experimentation, particularly with a race they had once "uplifted" millennia ago: the Inhumans. These beings, genetically altered by Kree science and exposed to mutagenic Terrigen Mists, developed diverse, often incredibly powerful, superhuman abilities. The Kree had later abandoned their Inhuman experiments, deeming them too unstable, too unpredictable, but they had always maintained a wary watch for any resurgence of Inhuman activity or potent Terrigenesis events.

The System confirmed Finch's findings: [KREE IMPERIAL DIRECTIVE – SUB-PROTOCOL "GENESIS PURGE": LOCATE AND NEUTRALIZE/ASSIMILATE SIGNIFICANT INHUMAN POPULATIONS OR UNCONTROLLED TERRIGENESIS EVENTS WITHIN TARGETED STAR SYSTEMS. INHUMANS DEEMED A FAILED EXPERIMENT/POTENTIAL THREAT TO KREE GENETIC PURITY/STABILITY.]

So, that was part of it. The Kree weren't just blockading Earth; they were potentially hunting for Inhumans, hidden descendants of their ancient experiments.

This gave Elias an idea, a dangerous, multi-layered deception. What if he could create a localized, seemingly significant "Terrigenesis event" on Earth, one that would draw the Kree's focused attention, perhaps even forcing them to deploy ground troops to investigate, thus exposing their capabilities and thinning their orbital forces? He didn't possess actual Terrigen Crystals (yet), but he had Element X, a potent mutagen. He had Finch's genius in bio-energetics. And he had O'Malley's "Blackwood Skunkworks" to create the necessary delivery and dispersal mechanisms.

The target location: a remote, geologically unstable volcanic island in the South Pacific that Elias had recently "acquired" through a Blackwood shell corporation, far from major population centers but within range of Kree orbital sensors if the energy signature was potent enough. The plan: O'Malley would rig a series of deep boreholes with precisely calibrated Element X charges. Finch would use his [Arch-Necromancer Lv.4] abilities to create a temporary, localized "necrotic resonance field" around the island, designed to mimic the strange, life-altering energies often associated with true Terrigenesis, further confusing Kree sensors. When detonated, the Element X would cause a contained but visually spectacular volcanic eruption, releasing a plume of irradiated steam and particulate matter that, when scanned by Kree long-range sensors, might just resemble an uncontrolled Terrigenesis event.

[OPERATION MISTFALL (DECEPTION PROTOCOL) INITIATED. OBJECTIVE: CREATE FALSE TERRIGENESIS SIGNATURE TO DIVERT KREE ATTENTION/RESOURCES. PROBABILITY OF SUCCESSFUL DECEPTION: 55% (Dependent on Kree sensor acuity/preconceived notions regarding Inhuman energy patterns). RISK: POTENTIAL FOR UNCONTROLLED ENVIRONMENTAL CONTAMINATION (MINIMIZED BY GEOTHERMAL VENTING), DRAWING UNWANTED KREE GROUND INTERVENTION (DESIRED OUTCOME, BUT WITH HIGH RISK TO HOST ASSETS IF THEY ENGAGE TOO EARLY).]

While O'Malley and a team of heavily shielded Thorne's Guard engineers meticulously prepared "Mistfall Island," Elias focused on other pressing matters.

Logan and Miller "Argent": Were now Elias's primary anti-Hydra "problem solvers" in Europe and beyond. Baron Strucker, cybernetically rebuilt and more unhinged than ever, was reportedly trying to reactivate dormant Hydra "sleeper super-soldiers" from WWII-era cryo-stasis programs across South America. Logan and Miller, their senses now capable of detecting the faint bio-signatures of these aging, often unstable, Nazi Ubermensch, became globe-trotting hunters, systematically eradicating these last vestiges of Hitler's superhuman dream. Each successful neutralization yielded small but steady Shard fragments. [Prime Essence Shard Reserve: 4.1/5.0].

Anya Petrova and "Wraith" (Bucky Barnes): Formed an unlikely but devastatingly effective intelligence/counter-intelligence duo. Anya, with her "Miss Sharma" persona, had become a trusted, if enigmatic, advisor to Peggy Carter within S.H.I.E.L.D., subtly guiding their efforts to root out the "Phoenix Initiative" Hydra infiltration (a task Captain America, now operating as a grimly determined independent agent with his own small network of loyal ex-Commandos, was also pursuing with relentless fervor, creating a useful internal pincer movement against Hydra within US intelligence). Wraith, his mind slowly healing, his combat skills razor-sharp, became Anya's ghost operative, performing targeted "data acquisitions," "personnel extractions," and occasionally, "permanent retirements" of individuals deemed critical threats by Elias, particularly those involved in unauthorized superhuman research or Soviet deep-cover operations in North America. His loyalty to Elias was solidifying into a quiet, lethal purpose: [92% (Redemption through Service; Host as the Only True Navigator in a World of Lies)].

Dr. Finch and the Klyntar: Finch's research into the dormant Klyntar symbiote yielded a breakthrough. He discovered that specific, complex sonic frequencies, combined with a controlled infusion of refined Prime Essence and a host possessing extreme psionic fortitude, could potentially awaken and stabilize the Klyntar, creating a more controlled, less corruptible symbiotic bond than previously thought possible. The risk was still immense, but the prospect of a truly loyal Klyntar-bonded operative, perhaps even more potent than Nox Thorne, was too great to ignore. Elias earmarked his next full 5.0 Shard acquisition for this "Project Venom Ascendant."

The X-Factor & a Hidden City: Elias's quiet monitoring of the mutant situation revealed a startling development. Charles Xavier, frustrated by Magneto's renewed militancy and the growing anti-mutant hysteria fueled by their public battles, had secretly established contact with a legendary, isolationist hidden city of Inhumans, "Attilan," located somewhere in the Himalayas (its precise location shielded by advanced cloaking technology that even Namor's senses could only vaguely perceive as an "echo in the mountains"). Xavier hoped to forge an alliance, to learn from Inhuman society how to manage burgeoning mutant powers and navigate their complex relationship with humanity. Magneto, predictably, viewed Attilan as either another potential mutant kingdom to be subjugated or a dangerous rival.

The System flagged: [INHUMAN ROYALTY (ATTILAN) – POTENTIAL NEW FACTION DETECTED. LEADER: BLACKAGAR BOLTAGON (BLACK BOLT – OMEGA-LEVEL SONIC MANIPULATOR). TECHNOLOGY: ADVANCED (KREE LEGACY/INDEPENDENT DEVELOPMENT). INTENTIONS TOWARDS EARTH/MUTANTS: UNKNOWN/ISOLATIONIST. THREAT/OPPORTUNITY: EXTREME. Recommend cautious observation. Avoid direct contact until Kree threat neutralized.]

Another powerful, hidden kingdom on Earth itself, with Omega-level leadership. The chessboard was becoming impossibly crowded. Elias knew he would eventually have to contend with Attilan and its silent king, Black Bolt.

Then, Operation Mistfall was triggered. O'Malley's Element X charges detonated in perfect sequence. The remote Pacific island convulsed. A massive plume of superheated, irradiated steam and strangely luminescent particulate matter erupted kilometers into the sky, creating an energy signature that Finch's ritual subtly "tuned" to mimic uncontrolled Terrigenesis.

The Kree reacted instantly. One of their light cruisers, the Kree Vigilance, broke formation from the orbital blockade and made a high-speed descent towards Mistfall Island, deploying a wave of atmospheric probes and, more significantly, several heavily armed Kree ground reconnaissance shuttles. They had taken the bait.

"Thomas," Elias's voice was calm, almost predatory, in the ears of his Adamantium Guard commander, who, with his full six-man True Legionnaire cohort, was positioned aboard the cloaked Sea Serpent just over the horizon from Mistfall Island. "The Kree are landing. Their attention is fixed. Their guard is down. Your objective: secure Kree prisoners, technology, and any... 'specimens' they might be carrying from other subjugated worlds. And Commander... I need that final Shard fragment to reach 5.0 for Project Venom. Make their losses... significant."

Thomas MacIntyre's grim affirmative was all Elias needed. His True Legionnaires, Earth's most elite, most secret superhuman soldiers, were about to give the Kree Empire a very bloody, very personal welcome to their planet. The Terrigen Deception was in play, and the fate of Attilan, the awakening of Captain America from the shadows, and the very future of Earth hung in the balance of this desperate, multi-front shadow war.

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