Sorcerer in the Marvel Universe

Olesis snatched the fel-infused bomb G’north had been praising to the heavens and gave it a careful inspection. Then she casually handed it to her sister.

"Heh heh..."

G’north took that as a good sign.

The satisfaction of the Eredar Twins had apparently gone straight to his head. He rubbed his hands together, his grin becoming even more ingratiating.

Then Olesis kicked him in the face.

The blow was vicious.

G’north had been kneeling on the floor, but the impact sent him flipping backward. He twisted through the air, somehow managing three and a half rotations before completing what looked suspiciously like a gymnastics routine. He landed flat on his back in a perfect starfish and immediately began rolling across the floor while clutching his head.

The institute still had other personnel working nearby, so the Eredar Twins had arrived in human forms rather than revealing their demonic bodies.

Which meant G’north hadn’t been kicked in the face by a savage hoof.

He’d been kicked by a high heel.

A long, viciously pointed heel.

Adrian and the Benjamin couple, who had been standing nearby, watched the spectacle with pale faces. The three exchanged a glance.

Their unanimous conclusion was simple.

Kick him harder.

They had no sympathy for the man whatsoever.

Honestly, the fact that they were merely standing there watching instead of joining in was already a testament to their restraint.

Because they’d all seen what G’north had done.

The bastard had pulled a bomb out of his own body.

And not just any bomb. Judging by the energy contained within it, that thing had enough firepower to turn a very unfortunate building into a crater.

Adrian and the Benjamins had been working at this company for nearly a month. For that entire time, they’d been serving as G’north’s assistants, following him around and helping with his research.

Which meant that, for the past month, they’d essentially been working beside a walking explosive device.

Now that they thought about it, they were starting to feel remarkably fortunate to still have all their limbs.

"You pull something like that out without warning again," Olesis snarled, pointing at him, "and I’ll make you eat it."

G’north froze.

Salorath was no kinder.

"Get over here. Put that thing away."

"Yes!"

G’north immediately scrambled toward them.

He practically rolled himself across the floor.

Salorath watched him with a cold expression.

"You’re brilliant when it comes to your research, so how have you managed to make absolutely no progress in every other area of your life?"

G’north finally managed to retrieve the bomb from Salorath and hurriedly put it away.

Salorath continued, her irritation plain.

"Think about it. If all we wanted was to level a place, why would we come looking for you?"

G’north blinked.

Then realization dawned.

He was a researcher, not a combatant. If the Eredar Twins had simply wanted revenge, they could have dropped something like an apocalyptic strike on the target and been done with it.

Compared with that, his little bomb was practically a firecracker.

"So what you actually want is...?"

"What progress have you made on your research?" Olesis asked, rubbing her temples impatiently.

"It has been nearly a month."

"Under my tireless efforts, we’ve made a breakthrough!"

G’north puffed out his chest.

Salorath’s expression remained unimpressed.

"I don’t want a breakthrough. I want results."

"Well, technically, I..."

G’north hesitated.

Then he glanced toward Adrian and the Benjamins.

"I and my assistants have already completed one."

He paused.

"Of course, it’s still an untested prototype."

Adrian and the Benjamins stared at him.

Now you remember us?

A moment ago, everything had been accomplished through his tireless efforts.

Apparently, now that there was a chance the prototype might explode, his assistants had become very important members of the team.

The three exchanged another look.

None of them wanted to be responsible for the inevitable disaster.

"Well?" Olesis said impatiently. "What are you waiting for?"

"Yes. Right away."

G’north wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and hurried away with Adrian and the Benjamins.

A short while later, they returned pushing a mountain of equipment.

The centerpiece was a complete suit of silver armor.

Light seemed to ripple across its surface, giving the entire thing an almost ceremonial appearance. It looked like some legendary suit of armor that belonged in an ancient temple rather than a modern laboratory.

Beside it rested a long blade, along with an enormous bow made from what appeared to be the same material as the armor.

The bow was nearly as tall as a person.

The Eredar Twins examined the equipment.

"Hm."

They both nodded.

The equipment certainly had potential.

"Let’s hope it performs as well as it looks."

"Of course it does!"

For perhaps the first time since they’d met him, G’north’s sleazy, obsequious expression faded.

This was his field.

His fingers glided over the armor’s chest plate as he explained, "The entire suit is made from an advanced alloy created by combining high-strength Earth metals with Chitauri armor material."

He tapped the chest plate.

"Even when struck by one of those automatic rifles humans use, the wearer will barely feel the impact."

The twins exchanged a glance.

Automatic rifle?

Was that supposed to impress them?

G’north noticed their reaction and quickly added, "Naturally, we couldn’t have created the material without my assistant, Mr. Adrian."

He shifted aside, revealing Adrian standing behind him.

"Uh... yes."

Adrian paused before giving an awkward nod.

It was true that he’d poured considerable effort into developing the material.

But there was something he would very much have liked to clarify.

He had only established the direction of the research.

The final ratios, the actual fusion process, and the method used to combine the materials had all been determined by G’north.

If the twins liked the result, Adrian didn’t particularly care how much credit he received.

But if they hated it?

He absolutely refused to be the one holding the bag.

"And there’s the helmet."

G’north lifted the armor’s helmet.

"Human vision isn’t particularly impressive, so I equipped it with a number of auxiliary systems. Thermal imaging, infrared, acoustic scanning, and several other functions."

He turned the helmet slightly.

"It is completely sealed. The wearer can breathe using the built-in oxygen supply, or use this filtration tube."

He picked up a tube connected to the helmet. It resembled a thick braid hanging from the back.

"The filter inside can block practically every known toxic gas, including nerve agents."

He paused.

"So you won’t have to worry about smog anymore."

The final remark was apparently meant to be a joke.

Olesis looked only mildly interested.

"Acceptable. But what about its offensive capabilities? Don’t tell me it only has that bow and sword."

"Of course not."

G’north’s grin returned.

He raised the armor’s left arm. A small computer interface was built into the forearm.

He tapped several controls.

The armor suddenly faded.

Not completely.

A faint outline remained, but under poor lighting or at a glance, the wearer would be extremely difficult to notice.

"This is a partial stealth system," G’north explained proudly. "It’s the most advanced concealment technology I can produce with engineering alone."

He tapped the controls again.

"More importantly, it doesn’t deactivate during combat."

The twins’ attention sharpened.

"And next, we have this."

G’north pressed another control.

A weapon unfolded from the armor’s left shoulder.

A compact shoulder cannon rose into position.

"This weapon was developed by Mr. and Mrs. Benjamin. They miniaturized the operating principles of the Chitauri rifle."

G’north’s expression became increasingly smug.

"After I completed their work, the weapon’s power is almost identical to the original."

The shoulder cannon activated.

Three laser targeting points appeared in a triangular formation.

"It can automatically lock onto targets. The targeting information is transmitted directly into the helmet’s visual processor."

G’north gestured toward the helmet.

"The operator can choose to fire manually, or allow the weapon to fire automatically once a target has been acquired."

The Eredar Twins finally looked genuinely satisfied.

"Very good."

Olesis and Salorath exchanged a glance.

Then, without consulting anyone else, they made their decision.

"This armor," Olesis announced, "shall henceforth be known as the Predator."

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