Inside the Empire State Building, the hearing chamber was filled to capacity.
Officials, witnesses, and observers sat in orderly rows, waiting for proceedings to begin. The atmosphere was tense but controlled—at least on the surface.
On the stage, the speaker adjusted his notes and addressed the room.
"Unfortunately, Mr. Noah Vale will not be present today. We've made repeated attempts to contact him, but have received no response. The hearing will proceed in his absence."
A ripple of murmurs spread through the crowd.
"Of course he didn't show."
"Figures. Probably too scared to face this."
"It doesn't matter. Once this ruling goes through, it'll still apply to him."
"My arm and leg were broken because of him. Now he won't even show his face?"
The mix of resentment and relief was palpable. Some were angry at being ignored. Others were quietly grateful he wasn't here.
The speaker continued, maintaining a steady tone.
"Even without Mr. Vale present, today's session will—"
The doors opened.
Slowly.
The sound cut through the room like a blade.
Every voice died.
A figure stepped inside.
Black hair, slightly disheveled. Eyes sharp, untamed. His presence filled the room before he even spoke.
"I heard you were talking about me."
Noah Vale walked in like he owned the place.
The effect was immediate.
The same people who had been speaking boldly moments ago fell silent. Confidence drained from their faces as reality set in.
It was one thing to criticize him from a distance.
It was another to stand in the same room.
Still, not everyone backed down.
A middle-aged man with a missing arm and a limp forced himself to his feet, leaning heavily on a cane. His face twisted with anger as he stepped into Noah's path.
"You finally decided to show up," he snapped. "I want answers. You think you can just—"
Noah didn't stop.
Didn't even look at him.
He kept walking.
The man hesitated, instinctively shifting aside—but not fast enough.
Their shoulders brushed.
That was all.
A wet, explosive sound echoed through the chamber.
Noah kept moving.
By the time he reached the stage, the speaker stood frozen, his face splattered with blood, staring blankly at what had just happened.
Behind Noah—
Half a body remained standing.
The other half was gone.
The room looked like it had been split in two. One side untouched, orderly. The other drenched in red, like something torn out of a nightmare.
The body swayed—
—and collapsed.
For a moment, there was silence.
Then the screaming started.
Loud.
Panicked.
Uncontrolled.
Noah frowned.
The noise grated on him.
He turned his head sharply and inhaled.
Then—
He roared.
The sound wasn't human.
A visible shockwave burst outward, shattering every window in the room. The force of it rattled the structure itself, leaving ears ringing and minds blank.
People dropped to the ground, clutching their heads, unable to think.
Noah watched them with open irritation.
Then he turned back, casually taking the microphone from the trembling speaker.
"This is a hearing," he said flatly. "You don't need to scream like you're on the street."
"If you have nothing to say, then listen."
His gaze swept across the room.
Cold.
Final.
"Anyone who tries to leave dies."
Silence.
Absolute.
Most of the crowd shook where they stood, too afraid to even breathe loudly.
But there was always someone.
A man stepped forward, glaring at Noah with forced defiance.
"You're just using violence to threaten people," he said. "I'm not afraid of you."
The people around him immediately backed away.
No one wanted to be near him.
This was being broadcast live.
Across New York. Across the country. Across the world.
Even those in power who might have wanted to protect Noah couldn't ignore this.
In a quiet villa somewhere, Camilla stared at the television, stunned.
"Wasn't he supposed to be at a gathering…?"
Elsewhere, phones rang endlessly.
Unanswered.
Names flashed across the screen:
Magneto
Thaddeus Ross
Gwen Stacy
Rogue
Nick Fury
No one knew what he was about to do.
Back in the chamber, Noah smiled faintly at the man.
"You're not afraid?" he said.
He tilted his head slightly.
"Then why's your heart racing?"
The man stiffened.
"You're shaking too," Noah added casually.
"That's just nerves," the man snapped.
Noah nodded, as if accepting the answer.
"Alright."
He raised a finger.
"Then let's make this interesting."
A faint violet glow gathered at his fingertip.
"Every three seconds, I'll kill the person here with the slowest heartbeat."
He paused.
"We stop when it's your turn."
A beat.
"One."
A flash of light.
A man in the crowd dropped instantly, a clean hole through his chest.
"Two."
Another pulse.
Another body hit the floor.
"Three."
Again.
Panic erupted.
This time, no one screamed.
They were too busy trying to survive.
People jumped in place, trying to force their hearts to race. One woman moved frantically, her entire body trembling with effort. Another man grabbed his injured arm and squeezed hard, forcing pain through his system just to keep his pulse elevated.
Desperation spread like wildfire.
But one person moved differently.
Instead of trying to survive—
He stepped forward.
Fast.
He grabbed the defiant man from earlier and yanked him close.
Then drove his fist straight into the man's chest.
A brutal, decisive blow.
The man collapsed instantly.
Noah stopped.
The glow at his fingertip faded.
He looked at the attacker with genuine surprise.
Then, slowly—
He smiled.
"Straight to the source," Noah said. "Efficient."
He lowered his hand.
"What's your name?"
The man steadied himself, breathing hard. "Taban. I work here. I didn't have a choice about attending."
Noah studied him for a moment.
Then nodded.
"Taban, right?"
A faint gesture toward the door.
"You can leave."