American Comics: Multiverse of Madness

277. Shazam.

"First of all, I haven't done anything rash. I believe that counts as a show of goodwill, doesn't it? Besides, I have no reason to harm you. After all, we're both human, right?"

Alex looked sincerely at the young boy, his expression serious. He knew that at this moment, the boy was like a frightened deer, emotionally fragile. Any wrong move could destroy the fragile trust he had built with him.

The identity of the boy in red wasn't hard to guess. Among the Justice League, which was composed of older heroes, there was only one teenage superhero. Although he usually operated in an adult form, at his core, he was still a fifteen-year-old kid.

"Billy Batson, heir to the power of Shazam, the current wielder of the mighty powers of the Greek gods. Finally, we meet," Alex greeted him with a slight nod.

However, Alex's words didn't elicit much of a response from the boy. Instead, it made him even more cautious. His face remained emotionless as he coldly stared at Alex, speaking slowly.

"Who are you?"

"I'm a wizard from another universe, codename: Raven." As Alex spoke, a raven appeared from seemingly nowhere and flew onto the paused body of a Parademon in mid-air. "Of course, you can also call me Alex."

"Another universe? The bridge between the divine realm and reality has been severed, and the entrances to the multiverse have been destroyed. How could you possibly be a wizard from another universe?"

Billy's brow furrowed even deeper, his eyes filled with distrust.

Though he was just a kid, his understanding of magical forces was not shallow. He could clearly see the dark powers swirling around Alex, powers no benevolent person would wield.

"How about broadening your perspective a little?" Alex raised his hand, and ghostly green flames ignited in the air. Under his control, the entire dream world began to twist and distort within the illusory flames.

Seeing this, Billy couldn't help but take a step back. He was ready at any moment to wake himself up from the dream. However, he didn't sense any malicious intent from Alex, so he stood his ground, frowning as he watched to see what Alex would do.

Soon, the green flames consumed everything around them. The Parademons, the heroes, and Darkseid's shadow all became illusions. With the injection of a special power, a world of illusions was slowly born within the dream.

Countless skyscrapers rose from the ground amidst the flames. The dark, apocalyptic world of Apokolips was suddenly transformed into the heart of New York City.

Watching in amazement, Billy's mouth, which had been tightly shut, slightly opened in surprise. He stared at this world, both familiar and foreign, with wide eyes full of astonishment.

"What is this place?" Billy asked, genuinely curious.

Without keeping him in suspense, Alex slowly walked toward Billy, stopping about two meters in front of him. Following Billy's gaze, Alex spoke.

"This is another universe."

The Avengers Tower stood tall in the center of the city. The 'A' on the building flickered twice before lighting up.

"In this universe, there is also an Earth. But on this Earth, the heroes who protect world peace aren't the Justice League, but others."

Before Alex had even finished speaking, a red figure swung through the air on a web. Billy's eyes widened as he watched the figure soar overhead, his breathing growing faster.

In the sky, a S.H.I.E.L.D. helicarrier slowly approached. Simultaneously, the advertisement screens in Times Square lit up, showing images of the Avengers in action.

Every screen displayed different scenes of the Avengers fighting. The young Billy was immediately captivated, his eyes darting from one hero to the next. Though he didn't recognize any of them, it didn't stop him from wanting to learn more about them. However, as Billy continued watching, a thought crossed his mind, and the light in his eyes dimmed.

He turned toward Alex and muttered in a low voice, "They seem better... better than me."

"Better?"

Alex patted Billy on the shoulder and turned to look into the distance.

Billy was startled for a moment, and followed Alex's gaze, only to see on the other side of the city a crimson wave of destruction, like a sunset, covering the sky, shattering the peace within the city.

War had descended upon Times Square. The helicarrier, engulfed in thick smoke, fell from the sky, and all the large screens showing images of the heroes froze one by one, turning to grayscale.

Skyscrapers collapsed like dominos, crumbling into ruins. In less than ten seconds, the peaceful scene was devoured by the chaos of destructive warfare.

Watching this, Billy began to tremble. He was breathing heavily, and the entire dream began to destabilize due to his emotional turmoil. The edges of the dream were collapsing rapidly.

"Heroes aren't omnipotent. No matter how powerful they may be, they can still make mistakes, mistakes that can lead to the downfall of an entire world. It's inevitable."

Sensing the instability in the dream, Alex used his magic to stabilize the dream plane, while speaking softly.

"But we still have a chance to fix it. That's why I'm here."

Billy raised his head and looked at Alex, who remained calm.

"Is there really still a chance?" Billy asked quietly.

"How will you know unless you try?" Alex lowered his head. "If you give up hope yourself, you'll never succeed. Besides, there are still many people in this world who haven't given up hope."

"Hope?"

Billy sneered, his lips curling in bitterness.

"Where I'm from, 'hope' is the symbol of Superman's family crest. But right now, all I feel is that it's a joke. By the way, do you know who Superman is?"

"I've heard of him," Alex nodded silently. "I've learned a bit about your world's history. To be honest, I think the Justice League's decision to start a war and send a child to the battlefield was pretty absurd."

"Yeah." Billy raised an eyebrow and looked at Alex. "What was your name again?"

"Alex."

"Right, Alex."

Billy chuckled bitterly to himself, then shook his head.

"I don't know how you got into my dream, but you've come to the wrong person. I'm retired now. I'm no longer a hero, so don't talk to me about hope."

"Billy..."

Alex was about to say something, but Billy suddenly pushed him away.

"Don't call me that name!"

In that moment, the emotions Billy had been suppressing for so long finally erupted.

Billy breathed heavily, overwhelmed by immense pain inside. He fought back the tears welling up in his eyes, refusing to let them fall. Staring at Alex, he bit down hard, his face full of defiance.

"Don't talk to me about hope, and don't tell me about plans or revenge. I'm not interested in any of that anymore!"

He glared fiercely at Alex, shouting at the top of his lungs.

"The last time I believed in their plan, do you know what happened to me?"

His voice gradually weakened as three vicious claw marks slowly appeared on Billy's once handsome face, stretching from his temple down to his cheek, marring his entire appearance. One of his eyes had permanently lost its light.

Billy stood on one leg, the other pant leg hanging empty, limp.

"This is who I am now."

Deep within Billy's heart, it felt as though a mountain of unbearable weight pressed down on him. No matter how hard he tried to hide it, he couldn't escape the chains of his suffering. If it weren't for seeing him now, who would ever think he was just a kid?

Having experienced such a tragic failure at such a young age, Billy had already lost everything. He didn't even have an outlet to release his grief. Who had ever considered how much he could bear?

Now, only in his dreams could he find a version of himself that was whole again.

.....

30 advanced chapters on p@treaon
For advance chapters: /Uchiha_Itachi007 (replace @ with a)
278. The Next Target.
279. The Seven Deadly Sins.
280. Preparations for Summoning Demons.
281. The Demon You Are Trying to Summon is Out of Service…
282. Constantine.