"The device to transform Super Skrulls was built long ago. It was that useless Talos who made us lose hope, who kept us from ever getting the chance to use it."
"Now that cowardly general of ours has been frightened into submission by Earth!"
"From this moment on, we will forge our own path—with our own strength—and make the Skrulls great again!"
"Begin!" Gravik commanded.
The Skrull operating the console quickly input a series of commands, took a deep breath, and pressed the activation button.
Everyone held their breath at that moment.
The eight tall columns on the platform crackled with arcs of electricity, connecting into a single field, accompanied by a rising hum like a swarm of bees.
Finally, the entire device erupted with a blinding light, as if a gateway to another world had been thrown open.
All the Skrulls present were forced to close their eyes.
When they opened them again, the light had vanished.
Standing atop the platform, Gravik casually tore off his shirt. Under the gaze of the eager crowd, his body suddenly radiated with a vast surge of platinum-colored photon energy.
Binary Mode!
The Skrulls gasped, breath caught in their throats.
A moment later, the ship erupted with thunderous cheers.
"Brothers and sisters, the time for our counterattack has come. Earth belongs to the Skrulls!"
Gravik floated into the air, declaring war amidst the thunderous cheers!
All around him, the cheers transformed into loud, resounding chants.
"Down with human tyranny! Earth belongs to the Skrulls!"
…
Day Six.
A massive number of Skrulls began converging on Gravik's ship.
This strange phenomenon quickly caught Talos's attention.
He led the Skrull high command and barged into the ship.
"Gravik, what are you doing? Don't tell me you're still entertaining those dangerous thoughts!"
Talos pushed aside the guards trying to block his way and stormed toward Gravik.
But just as the words left his mouth, his gaze was drawn to the massive device before him.
"My god… this machine is… You actually rebuilt it!" Talos stared in shock at the Super Skrull transformation device.
"I told you—we had a chance to win. Do you regret it now? Regret not taking Carol's blood two days ago when you had the chance?"
Gravik sneered, the corner of his lips curling as his provocative gaze pierced into Talos.
The shock in Talos's heart gradually gave way to a chilling calm.
He saw the hostility in Gravik's eyes, then looked around at the young Skrulls surrounding them.
Several pairs of eyes stared back at him with cold indifference—there was not a trace of respect for him as their general, only scorn and disdain.
"You've already made up your minds, haven't you?" Talos frowned. "You no longer intend to follow your general's command… and instead, you've chosen the opposite path?"
"So what if we have?" Gravik didn't bother to hide it.
"Stop this, Gravik. Whatever you're planning, stop it now!"
Talos spoke with utmost seriousness.
"The universe isn't as simple as you think. You're still young—don't act on impulse!"
"Impulse? Ha. Haha. Hahahaha!!" Gravik covered his face with one hand and burst into laughter.
The laughter was mad, growing louder and louder, like thunderous drumbeats echoing through the ship.
"Do you see it now?"
Gravik suddenly turned to the other Skrulls. "Do you see? This is our general—weak, hypocritical, always hesitating. All he knows is compromise and retreat!"
He turned back and placed a hand on Talos's chest, patting it. "You have no idea how powerful we've become. Captain Marvel? Superman? They're nothing. They're the ones who should kneel before us."
"Gravik," Talos narrowed his eyes, "Don't drag the Skrulls into something even worse."
"Even worse?"
Gravik's eyes suddenly burst with savage malice. "What could possibly be worse than this?"
"Brothers and sisters, show the General just how great we are now!"
Boom!
As his words fell, several Skrulls—including Gravik himself—suddenly surged with photon energy.
They looked exactly like green-skinned versions of Captain Marvel.
"You… when did you—!" Talos's eyes widened in shock, his breathing growing strained.
"Right after you rejected my request a few days ago! So, General, do you still think we're acting impulsively?" Gravik asked coldly.
Talos's horrified gaze swept over each of his compatriots, finally settling on Gravik.
"…You're going back to attack Earth, aren't you?" he said, his expression full of conflict. "Don't do this. Go somewhere else. Find another planet. Rebuild Skrullos there."
Gravik shook his head in disbelief. "You're still defending Earth even now? Just how much do you love that place? Or are you actually a human in disguise?"
He spread his hands toward the others. "You see? The one thing that's been holding the Skrulls back from greatness has always been our 'General'!"
"Sorry, General," Gravik said, turning to meet Talos's eyes. "But you're not our General anymore."
Splurt!
A pair of blood-soaked hands pierced straight through Talos's chest.
With a calm expression, Gravik withdrew his hand, letting Talos—his chest torn open, gasping with a ragged "huh… huh…"—collapse onto the ground.
"From this moment on, I am the General."
His wolf-like eyes swept across the room.
"Tomorrow, we set course for Earth!"
"Tonight, we deal with Captain Marvel."
…
Night of Day Six.
In space, there was no distinction between day and night.
What Gravik referred to as "night" simply meant six hours later.
Outside Captain Marvel's starship, several Super Skrulls, their bodies cloaked in photon energy, had surrounded her.
At a certain moment, the airlock hissed open with a soft shhh.
Light from inside the ship illuminated Carol's figure as she stepped forward.
She looked around from the doorway, and the sight of multiple figures cloaked in a Binary Mode-like aura made her pupils contract.
"Skrulls…" For the first time, Carol realized just how little she truly understood this species.
She tapped her communicator and connected to the Skrull channel.
"Where's Talos? Did he send you?"
Silence. No one responded.
"Alright then. Sounds like my old friend isn't going to make it. So, are we doing this by the book… or skipping straight to the fight?"
Photon energy surged around her as Carol entered Binary Mode.
In the next moment, several Skrulls attacked simultaneously.
...
Three minutes later.
Carol, beaten like a dying dog, was flung into the ship's cabin by Gravik, his entire body soaked in blood.
"Drain all her blood—use it to create more Super Skrulls as fast as possible!"
Gravik's gaze passed through the viewport, staring into the depths of space.
"Next up… is Superman."
…
Day Seven.
A jump point suddenly tore open at the outer edge of the solar system.
A massive fleet of Skrull warships descended upon the star system once again.
The world-renowned Captain Marvel, Carol Danvers, was bound spread-eagle to the prow of the flagship—arms and legs outstretched in the shape of a cross, like prey captured by primitive hunters and displayed before their tribe.
Her face was pale and lifeless, her body almost completely drained of blood and energy. Only a faint trace of photon energy kept her barely alive.
At her side stood two Super Skrulls, watching her closely, ready to extract any energy she might recover.
...
Inside the flagship.
Nearly a thousand Super Skrulls had gathered.
Gravik stood at the front of them all, arms crossed.
"We are going to take Earth—but this time, we have only one target: Superman's blood."
______
Read ahead of WN at Patreon.com/LiveLifeLove