Marvel: Awakening the Universe.

Chapter 242 God Didn't Come, Aquaman Did! (5K Chapter!)
The sky was pitch black.

The endless sea.

His face was pale, his lips were blue, and he was struggling to keep himself from sinking into the increasingly turbulent seawater. He was paddling with his hands while his eyes were filled with despair, his mouth was moving constantly, and his voice was trembling.

"Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name..."

"Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven..."

"May your glory shine like the morning sun..."

Hawke stood on the deck with one hand in his pocket, looking down at the stopwatch ticking away on his wrist.

Then--

He looked up at Dr. Merrick in the seawater and smiled slightly.

"time up!"

"No no no."

Dr. Merrick, in the seawater, listened to Hawke's calm words and saw Hawke's equally calm expression. He panicked instantly and began to recite his prayer for God's protection more and more frantically.

Even when Hawke used telekinesis to extract him from the seawater, and even when Hawke was holding his neck, his prayers were so urgent that it was visibly a desperate hope for God's protection.

result!

Nothing happened.

Hawke looked up and glanced at the night sky, where not a single star could be seen, then looked back at Merrick, who was still praying: "Stop praying, your God isn't coming."

He wasn't particularly disappointed.

If they don't want to come, they don't have to come.

It's Hawk's loss that God doesn't come; it's not Hawk's fault. God will know when Hawk ascends to the Heavenly Dimension.

But Dr. Merrick was utterly desperate.

"Will not."

"Will not."

“God will not abandon me; I am God’s most devout believer.”

“I have shed blood for God, I have been imprisoned for God.”

Dr. Merrick looked at Hawke with increasing excitement as he spoke: "God will not abandon me. Wait, it must be that the wind was too strong and the water was too cold, which caused my prayers not to be received by God. Yes, that must be it. Please let me go, please let me go, please let me go. When I get back to land, I will definitely pray that God will forgive you."

Hawke looked at Dr. Merrick in his hand, his expression shifting from initial despair to fervor after his self-conquest, even going so far as to say he wanted God to forgive him. Hawke's lips twitched involuntarily.

Dr. Merrick's expression was one of fervor.

"I am the new Noah. Believe me, only I can lead humanity to survival in this war between angels and demons."

"Noah?"

"Yes, I am..."

"You look like a melon rind to me."

Hawke interrupted him abruptly, looking at Dr. Merrick whom he was holding in his hand, and frowned, saying, "I now even suspect that you are not a believer in God at all, but just a fraudster who impersonates God."

Myrick gripped Hawke's arms with both hands and roared excitedly.

"No, I am, I am the new Noah, as God himself said."

"Oh, is it so."

"Otherwise, how could I have received a red apple from God?"

"You mean this?"

Upon hearing this, Hawke had an idea and took out the bitten red apple that had been placed in the underworld to look at Merrick.

Merrick's eyes lit up when he saw the red apple right in front of him, and he reached out to grab it: "This is mine, give it back to me."

Hawke put the red apple away again, smiling as he looked at Merrick in his hand: "Tell me how God found you, and I promise I'll let you stay with the red apple."

Merrick looked at Hawke with a suspicious expression.
"Really?"

"I never lie."

Hawke met Dr. Merrick's suspicious gaze with a calm tone, then released his grip on Dr. Merrick's right hand, took a step back, leaned against the railing behind him, enjoying the sea breeze, and smiled at Dr. Merrick: "Once you finish your story, I promise to reunite you with your red apple."

Soaked to the bone and even shivering, Merrick slumped onto the deck, looking at Hawke.

“You swear to God.”

"can."

“I swear to God, if you tell me the truth, I promise I will reunite you with your red apple. If I am lying, may I not go to heaven after I die and be caught by God.”

Hawke raised his hand without changing his expression and swore a solemn oath to God, then lowered his hand and gestured to Merrick with his eyes.

"Your turn, Doctor, speak."

"It all started when I was invited to help S.H.I.E.L.D. solve a case."

Dr. Merrick, seeing Hawke conducting experiments on God, also lowered his guard and, after a moment of silence, recounted his entire experience of meeting God face to face.

The story is awful and very long.

Simply put, as a global expert in the field of biology, Dr. Merrick has naturally collaborated with S.H.I.E.L.D.

One such collaboration involved Dr. Merrick going to S.H.I.E.L.D.'s sandbox warehouse, which stores strange items that S.H.I.E.L.D. has found or seized from around the world, to identify a sticky substance that seemed to have its own activity.

The appraisal lasted for a month. Because Dr. Merrick had collaborated with S.H.I.E.L.D. several times and was a familiar face to them, he received some special treatment during the sandbox appraisal process. For example, he could browse various strange items stored in the warehouse during breaks.

Examples include a mirror that bleeds, a talking comb, and a reindeer head that can still talk even when only one head remains.

The red apple was what he saw during one of his browsing sessions.

Then he became fascinated.

Dr. Merrick claims that he heard the voice of God the moment he saw the red apple.

God told him that the reason his secret experiments with clones failed was because they lacked a soul.

Dr. Merrick's piety moved God, causing God, who had long abandoned Earth, to turn his attention back to this world that had been corrupted by demons after his departure.

God told Dr. Merrick that he would be the new Noah and the new Jesus, and that he should use the tens of thousands of pure souls in the red apple to create a new human race.

He will soon descend upon the world and unleash another great flood to cleanse this world defiled by demons. Only he and the new humans he created will be able to board the new ark and reach the new world after the great flood.

Dr. Merrick believed him, then stole the Red Apple, using the pretext of providing perfect adapters to the wealthy to earn their investment, and continuously expanded his cloning base, attempting to build an unprecedented new human race created by him.

He was then captured by S.H.I.E.L.D.

But Dr. Merrick firmly believes that this is God's test for him, just as Jesus was nailed to the cross by ignorant humans.

Being captured by S.H.I.E.L.D. did not shake Dr. Merrick's faith; on the contrary, it made him even more convinced of God's promise.

He, Merrick, is the new Jesus.

He was then rescued by Hydra. Initially, Dr. Merrick was very reluctant to cooperate with Hydra.

After all, he was God's choice, while Hydra seemed to be the epitome of evil.

But he reacted quickly.

Hydra saved him, but S.H.I.E.L.D. persecuted him just as they persecuted Jesus.

all……

Hydra isn't a villain at all.

Dr. Merrick then reached a cooperation agreement with Hydra, in which Hydra would promise him funding and a cloning facility, and in return, Dr. Merrick would help Hydra clone their own Hydra Captain using Hawke's blood.

Hawke listened as Merrick recounted how he was chosen by God to be the new Jesus and the new Noah, and looked up at Merrick.

"What's the situation with those clones in those several buried pits outside the base? Didn't you say you were going to build a new human race? Then why did you destroy them after you created them?"

"God's will."

"Oh?"

"After God left humanity in disappointment, demons took over Hell. If God wants to shine his light on the world again, he needs devout souls to act as pioneers and fill Hell."

"so……"

Hawke looked at Merrick thoughtfully upon hearing this: "You keep cloning me, and then keep killing me, just so that those formatted souls in the Red Apple can pass through my clones and go to hell?"

Dr. Merrick nodded.

"Very correct."

"You're using my clone as a tool to cleanse your soul."

"There's no other way. There are very few people in this world who are truly devout to God, and God has lost faith in them, so he chose me."

Dr. Merrick explained it this way, and when he said that God had chosen him, he couldn't help but puff out his chest, looking quite proud.

Hawke remained expressionless.

"why me."

"what?"

"If you're going to help God cleanse his soul, is it necessary to single me out? Can't you clone other people?"

"No."

"what?"

"God said you are Samael!"

"who."

Upon hearing this, Hawke, without waiting for Dr. Merrick to explain, instinctively raised an eyebrow: "Lucifer Morning Star?"

Dr. Merrick was somewhat surprised, then seemed to realize something and said with a smile, "Yes, you were adopted by the church, Hawke. This is no coincidence, because you are Samael, the former archangel."

Hawk chuckled, but did not refute Merrick. Instead, he extended his hand and said, "Go on, I am Archangel Samael, and that's what God told you."

"Yes."

“You are Samael.”

"At least partly so."

"God told me that your soul has also been defiled by this world now occupied by demons, so cloning you and then killing you is helping you."

Dr. Merrick nodded with absolute certainty, then looked at Hawke with fanatical eyes and said, "Those souls that have been baptized by your clones will eventually become part of your soul. When they develop, when they grow, when they become strong, they will cleanse your soul, allowing your soul to evolve, and you will return, Archangel Samael!"

Hawke understood. He nodded and looked at Dr. Merrick.

"So, God wants his soul to possess me?"

"No no no."

Dr. Merrick shook his head repeatedly.

"It's not possession, it's evolution. Your soul has been tainted by demons. Only when a pure soul merges with you again can you understand your true identity. You are Samael, you are the Archangel, you are..."

"okay."

Hawke immediately raised his hand to interrupt.

Dr. Merrick, who was getting excited, subconsciously shut up and looked at Hawke.

Hawke then looked at Dr. Merrick.

"last question."

“Samael, you speak.”

“Sa…”

Hawke's lips twitched again as he listened to Merrick, who had helped him change his name. He barely suppressed the urge to kill Merrick right then and there, and asked directly, "Cestrick, do you know where he is?"

Dr. Merrick shook his head.

"do not know."

"really do not know?"

“I have told you everything I know. After all, you are the new Samael, and I am the new Jesus. We are in cahoots.”

This guy's brain has been completely swayed.

Hawke listened to Dr. Merrick's words and thought to himself, then smiled slightly at Dr. Merrick in front of him.

Dr. Merrick rose from the deck and shrugged.

"So, can you give me back the red apple?"

"of course."

Hawke smiled, but his eyes instantly turned crimson.

"boom!"

"puff!"

As the phoenix rays shot out, Dr. Merrick, still smiling and dreaming of returning to serve God, instantly vaporized before Hawke's eyes.

Hawke withdrew the Phoenix Ray, glanced at Dr. Merrick's soul, which was being pulled into the underworld by his own underworld, and curled his lip.

When did he say he would return the red apple to Merrick, or when did he say he would let Merrick leave?

Hawke kept saying that if Myrick cooperated, he would reunite Myrick with the Red Apple.

Where is Red Apple now?
Underworld.

At that moment, it was being held and played with by his sister Anna.

Where is Myrick now?

They went to the underworld too.

and so……

He did not lie, nor did he break his promise, although he was tempted to break it and see if God would appear.

But Hawke thought about it and felt it wasn't necessary to waste his good character for God.

In a word.

God?

He doesn't deserve it!

So, God is also planning to kill two birds with one stone.

He tricked the pitiful, brain-dead Merrick into cloning his body, which was like laundering money, cleansing his soul. He let the souls that had passed through his body silently infiltrate into Hell, while secretly tinkering with his own angel of death. At the same time, he secretly gathered these souls, trying to use them to possess his clone, which had already passed through his body and was now in his shape.

Tsk tsk.

This is mind-blowing...

Compared to Hydra back in the day.

Hydra used to fight on two fronts: against the Russians and against the West.

The same goes for this God.

He not only wanted to wage war against Mephisto, but also wanted to take care of him as well while dealing with Mephisto.

Ok.

As expected of God.

Hawke described Hydra's actions as utterly foolish.

But he chose to describe God's actions with four different words.

remarkably brave.

If you have the guts, then show yourself and come face to face with me.

Your new Jesus, your Noah, and even the red apple you used to invade Earth are all in my hands. Aren't you going to show yourself, or even just project yourself and say something harsh?

It's better to lose the battle than the person.

You're God, so pay attention and don't lose points!

Hawke stood on the deck, looking up at the still pitch-black night sky, his mind racing, hoping to meet God.

result……

one more time.

When he made Merrick pray for God's arrival, God did not appear. Now he has chopped up Merrick, and even his soul and the red apple that stores tens of thousands of souls have been packaged up by himself, but God still has not appeared.

obviously.

God is offline.

Ok.

Seeing this, Hawke sighed with some regret that he would not be able to meet God tonight.

but……

God did not come.

But there were other things too.

Bang!
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!
Just as Hawke turned his gaze from the night sky and glanced at the surging sea, four waves crashed around the speedboat.

next second.

Four beauties...

wrong.

It's a black fish.

Four black merfolk, perfectly blending into the darkness, leaped from the sea, spears in hand, glaring at Hawke on the speedboat with eyes full of anger and hatred, shrieking: "Death to the genocide murderer!"

This sound is...

Wakanda?
Hawke raised an eyebrow, looking at the woman in front of him, whose expression was twisted, holding a spear and frozen in mid-air, who appeared to be a remnant of Wakanda. He then reached out and grabbed her by the neck, pulling her close to him and examining her closely.

into the eye.

He then realized that the black woman, who was suspected to be a remnant of Wakanda, was not actually black.

The skin of the people of Wakanda is black, but the skin of this black woman in front of me is a bluish-gray color similar to that of some fish in the deep sea.

Moreover, her physical characteristics are significantly different from those of Wakanda.

Her fingers were webbed, and not only her fingers, but even her toes had translucent webbing.

Its ears are also pointy.

Furthermore, his eyes were large and deep-set, exposed, and his blue-gray skin had luminous patterns.

obviously.

These four are not remnants of Wakanda.

But their roar just now was indeed in the Wakanda language.

Hawke is certain of that.

Can……

When he destroyed Wakanda, he didn't discover that this new species with blue-gray skin, webbed fingers, and pointed ears existed there.

Could they live on the coast of Wakanda?

Wakanda in the sea?

Hawke frowned as he thought, then looked at the little black woman whose bluish-gray skin was gradually turning red as he held her in his hand. Thinking he had used too much force, he released his right hand to let her breathe freely.

but……

The little black girl's pupils gradually dilated, and her face gradually turned red.

She wasn't the only one; the other three, including the little black woman holding a spear and frozen around the speedboat, were in the same situation.

Hawke unsealed the little black woman's mouth.

next moment.

The little black woman opened her mouth, looking at Hawke with fear and pleading in her eyes.

"I……"

"I can't breathe."

"I can't breathe!!"

"..."

(End of this chapter)