Marvel: Awakening the Universe.

Hawke had planned to go to the Hell Dimension to find Mephisto after his sister woke up.

result--

Before his sister Anya could wake up, the person he had just mentioned to Wanda came knocking on his door.

Pepper Potts.

wrong!

It's Pepper Stark.

After all, Pepper and Tony are already married, and she has already taken the husband's surname.

After the Scorch event, Pepper, as his wife, inherited the Stark family and lived in a lakeside cottage in the suburbs of New York, raising their daughter, Morgan Stark.

She also founded the Tony Stark Foundation, dedicated to philanthropic areas such as education and healthcare.

and so--

Even after the scorching sun was extinguished, Pepper seemed to fade from the public eye, but her connections with New York City and Washington, D.C. remained.

Therefore, this trip was at the request of Washington.

"They say you've recovered."

Pepper's expression brightened when she saw Hawke: "I didn't believe it at first, but I never thought you'd really come back."

Hawke smiled slightly upon hearing this: "Wanda said that you helped save 521A Palm Street all these years, thank you."

Pepper laughed and said, "There aren't many people you can talk to these days."

Indeed, there aren't many left.

After the Fissure event, there were very few of the original Avengers left.

Natasha Romanoff left herself in the Land of Souls in a gamble of hope.

Steve Rogers traveled back in time.

Tony sacrificed himself for all of humanity.

Thor is rarely on Earth.

and so--

Aside from Hawkeye and Hulk, who are still active but have largely returned to their families, it can truly be said that an era has come to an end.

Pepper's reason for choosing to keep 521A Palm Street is just as she just said.

She simply wanted to preserve a record of her husband's era.

As for the rest.

Pepper didn't think much of it.

soon.

After Pepper sat down on the sofa at Wanda's invitation, she took a glass of water from Wanda, took a sip, and then explained her purpose.

"The people in Washington want to know your future plans."

"Intend?"

Wanda frowned slightly.

Pepper smiled and shook her head, saying, "Wanda, you destroyed S.W.S. not long ago."

Wanda sneered upon hearing this.

"They concealed Hawke's body. My decision not to go to Washington and raze the White House to the ground was already an act of mercy."

"This is what Washington is worried about."

Pepper smiled and said, "Washington is very interested in how things will work out in the future, so the president contacted me and asked me to be his advocate."

Hawke, who was leaning against the stairs and listening to the conversation between his younger sister while waiting for her to wake up, raised an eyebrow upon hearing this.

"Lobbyist?"

Hawke looked at Pepper, who was looking up at the sound, and smiled, "What conditions did they offer?"

Want a truce?

Yeah.

There was no war to begin with, but since Washington wants to pay compensation, let's just accept it.

Moreover, accepting this money would put Washington at ease and make Hawke feel more at ease.

After all, he was planning to go to Hell later, and then use Hell as a transit point to reach the main timeline of Universe 616.

He was a former fighter, so neither Wanda nor his sister Anya could go with him; he had to stay here.

therefore--

It's not impossible for Washington to negotiate.

The most important thing.

Hawke is kind-hearted, after all.

Pepper looked at Hawke, who had spoken up, and directly stated the conditions offered by Washington.

"They will withdraw the arrest warrant against Anya."

"laugh!"

Hawke chuckled at Pepper's description of Washington's conditions, resting his chin on his hand and leaning against the stair railing: "You can let them try whether they dare to continue the manhunt."

Before his arrival, it was understandable that Washington issued a warrant for Anya's arrest.

After all, Washington has always been a wolf cub, notorious for its opportunism, betrayal, and treachery.

For Washington, no matter how impressive Hawke was before.

But he was already dead, so in Washington's eyes, Hawke's deterrent power over them and any sacrifices he made for them had been wiped out.

When a person dies, their debts are wiped out.

same.

When a person dies, all ties are severed. Therefore, for Washington, continuing to issue a warrant for Anya's arrest is a normal procedure.

But will they continue to stubbornly pursue Anya even after their own arrival?
Hawke didn't believe it.

“They can try.”

"The second thing is that you can continue to live here, and they guarantee that no one will disturb your life."

"The same kind of flashy but impractical stuff."

"Thirdly, they will fully cover your living expenses here."

"This is actually quite a good deal."

Hawke smiled slightly upon hearing the condition: "But for them, this condition is actually nothing at all."

US dollars are very valuable.

As is well known, in the eyes of those who actually hold power in the federal government, those who can invite Pepper to be their lobbyist, the US dollar is nothing more than paper, and free paper at that.

but……

"We agree to the conditions."

Hawke smiled and said, "Reassure them that as long as they don't provoke us, we won't provoke them either."

Upon hearing this, Pepper looked at Hawke. "Really?"

"It may be false to others, but to you, what I'm saying is true."

Hawke looked at Pepper with a serious expression: "Reassure them that as long as they keep their promises, but tell them that if they break them, it will be useless for them to persuade me to do so, no matter who I ask to speak on their behalf, once I return."

Pepper heard this.

"Wait for you to come back?"

"I want to go out."

Hawke shrugged, thought for a moment, and said to Pepper, "If all goes well, I should be able to find Tony as well."

He hadn't originally intended to say it.

but……

Once again, he simply didn't trust Washington, just like Mephisto.

Mephisto in his universe was trained, and similarly, the fickle Washington in his universe was also trained by him repeatedly to become the obedient, sensible, and filial child he is today.

So talking to Pepper now can at least ensure that if things in Washington, D.C. become unpredictable, Pepper's intervention will likely allow them to hold out until he returns from the main timeline.

Upon hearing Hawke's words, Pepper's previously calm expression instantly turned excited.

"Hawk, are you serious? You can really bring Tony back?"

"Didn't I just come back?"

Hawke smiled slightly: "However, the situation is a little different from mine. If you want Tony to come back, you need to do some preparations first."

Pepper didn't even think about it.

"What job?"

"If all goes well, I will be able to bring his soul back, but I have no way to bring his physical body back."

"what do you mean……"

Upon hearing Hawke's words, Pepper's mind raced, and she quickly realized what he meant.

"clone?"

"Correct."

Hawke nodded: "The Starks should have that kind of technology."

Pepper shook his head: "The Starks don't have the technology to clone, but they can buy it."

Hawke considers anyone or any company that says this to be boasting.

But Stark?

The Starks have the power to say that; they can buy anything they want with money.

This is just like Batman buying Superman's house.

Although Superman's house was seized by the bank, Batman simply sold the bank, which essentially meant he bought Superman's house directly.

After saying this, Pepper made a phone call almost without hesitation, then looked at Hawke after hanging up.

"Within ten hours, Stark will have the world's most advanced cloning technology and cloning laboratory."

"sharp."

Hawke gave Pepper a thumbs up, then looked at Wanda: "Pietro too, do you have his DNA data?"

Wanda shook her head.

at this time.

Anya, who had woken up sometime earlier, pushed open the door and came out of the house: "Hydra's internal database contains Wanda and Pietro's DNA data."

Hawke turned to look at his sister Anya, who was walking out of the room, and smiled slightly.

"woke up?"

"Are you leaving again?"

Anya ignored Hawke's smile and looked at her brother with a serious expression.

Hawke smiled.

"How did you know."

"Because every time you go out, if you don't want to take me with you, you'll arrange something for me to do."

"……All right."

Hawke looked at his sister with a sudden realization and smiled brightly: "That's why I said you're my real sister."

Anya frowned.

Can I come with you?

"No."

"But you just got back, I just saw you."

Anya's voice trembled with a hint of tears: "I swear, I'll stay with you and won't cause you any trouble."

Hawke smiled.

"It's not that I don't want to take you, but you have something more important to help me with."

"You lied to me again?"

"Not this time."

Hawke said, looking at Anya, "I need you to go to Kamar-Taj and keep an eye on Stephen. Until I get back, he can't have any contact with the outside world."

Anya raised her eyebrows.

"Stephen, Doctor Strange?"

"Yes."

"What's up with him?"

"I'm afraid he'll ruin my plans."

Hawke smiled and said, "After you go to Kamar-Taj, the King will tell you everything. Your task is only one: keep a close eye on him. In this matter, you are the only person I trust. Even Wanda, I don't trust, in this matter."

Hearing Hawke's words, Pepper, who was sitting on the sofa, subconsciously looked at Wanda, who was sitting next to her.

Wanda rolled her eyes at Hawke's words.

Why are you using me as an analogy to fool your sister?

but……

Forget it.

She is also a very kind person.

Anya was taken aback when she heard that her brother didn't even trust Wanda, but she still looked at her brother with some doubt.

"really?"

"of course."

Hawke looked at his sister with a smile: "In this world, the only person I can trust without reservation is you."

Anya, the younger sister: "..." (End of this chapter)