Chapter Summaries

Loki came to Midgard, registered himself and Thor for the World's Greatest Ability User Tournament by hypnotizing a receptionist, and returned to Asgard intending to lure Thor into competing. A week later, Hawking saw news that Obadiah Stane had died in an airplane accident as the tournament approached.

• Loki watched an advertisement for the tournament and decided to use it to embarrass Thor and undermine his claim to Asgard's throne.
• Loki registered himself as a strength-type ability user at the New York Hero Alliance headquarters.
• Loki hypnotized the receptionist into registering Thor and listing his powers, then teleported back to Asgard to persuade him to compete.
• A week later, Hawking checked the news after training and saw that the tournament was three days away.
• Hawking read that Obadiah Stane had died in an airplane accident.

Hawking reviewed the tournament roster and found that Asgardians and S.H.I.E.L.D. agents had entered alongside familiar heroes, making him eager for the competition. At S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters, Nick Fury prepared his team for the tournament, while Black Marvel questioned why he was willing to expose their agents.

• Hawking read the contestant list and found Tony Stark, Wolverine, Storm, Cyclops, Namor, and several Asgardians among the entrants.
• Hawking saw that Nick Fury had entered Black Widow Natasha, Hawkeye Barton, Captain Carter, Hydra Steve, and Black Marvel, and wondered what Fury was after.
• Hawking confirmed the roster with Susan and returned to training, hoping to combine Chakra and Shinigami Power before the tournament began.
• Nick Fury told the S.H.I.E.L.D. contestants to aim for the highest ranking and promised intelligence support from the agency.
• After the meeting, Black Marvel asked Nick Fury whether entering the tournament and exposing S.H.I.E.L.D. agents was worth the extra funding.

Nick Fury briefed Black Marvel on the plan to test Hawking’s transformations and learned that Hydra was developing Sentinel Robots using technology stolen from Trask Industries. Three days later, Thor and his companions arrived at the New York Hero Alliance headquarters as Hawking and Susan prepared the tournament’s entrance ceremony.

• Nick Fury told Black Marvel to avoid confronting Hawking directly if he transformed, and she agreed to stall him until his forms ended.
• Hill gave Nick Fury interrogation results revealing Hydra’s Sentinel Robot project and Alexander Pierce’s role in destroying Trask Industries.
• Nick Fury decided to deal with Hydra after the tournament ended.
• Thor, Sif, and the Warriors Three arrived at the headquarters in armor, while Loki urged Thor to change clothes and fetched more beer.
• Hawking confirmed with Susan that staff, security teams, and reporters were ready for the tournament.
• Susan ordered the branch managers to prepare, and staff brought out a mysterious ancient-looking gate as contestants were called to line up.

Heroes Alliance opened the World's Greatest Ability User Tournament on a transformed Atlantic island, dazzling contestants, audience members, and the world with its magical venue and mass Portkey transportation. As guests settled into their hotels before the matches began, Nick Fury considered how S.H.I.E.L.D. might benefit from obtaining the transportation method.

• More than a hundred news helicopters followed Pyro across the Atlantic and broadcast the tournament island, which Heroes Alliance ability users had transformed with sea life, flowers, and a wooden city.
• Mr. Hawking created blue Fiendfyre displays and wooden bridges and platforms, while Angel welcomed contestants to the island.
• Contestants, including the six people from Asgard and Namor, arrived through Portkeys and were astonished by the venue and Heroes Alliance's power.
• Lucky audience members and their families followed through the Portkeys, and staff escorted contestants and guests to hotels for a day of rest and rule briefings.
• Nick Fury watched the arrivals with Mr. Hawking and considered using the mysterious mass transportation method for S.H.I.E.L.D. operations.

Hawking negotiated with Nick Fury to exchange Portkeys for new advances in Gravity Technology, hoping S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Skrulls would help him overcome the Gravity Chamber’s fifty-times-gravity limit. He gave Fury a pair of Portkeys and left him to form a research team.

• Hawking used Legilimency to learn that Nick Fury had come to ask about his Portkeys.
• Hawking revealed that he made Portkeys himself and let Fury test one by transporting him to the roof of S.H.I.E.L.D. Tower.
• Fury offered to trade for Portkeys, and Hawking asked for new Gravity Technology research in return.
• Hawking explained that he wanted S.H.I.E.L.D. to help develop Gravity Technology beyond the fifty-times limit.
• Hawking gave Fury a pair of point-to-point Portkeys that could be activated by a mild electric shock, and Fury agreed to form a research team.

Hawking gave Nick Fury two fragile Portkeys and learned through Legilimency that S.H.I.E.L.D. had entered agents in the Ability User Tournament to assess his strength. The tournament opened in Wood City before a crowd and high-ranking officials from many countries, with Hawking seated as the final opponent.

• Hawking promised Nick Fury more Portkeys in exchange for improvements to the Gravity Chamber and warned him not to break the wineglass Portkeys.
• Nick Fury had Agent Hill secure the Portkeys and left after explaining that the president had ordered S.H.I.E.L.D. to enter the tournament.
• Hawking used Legilimency to discover that S.H.I.E.L.D. planned to assess his strength, but he remained confident and resumed training.
• The next day, Wood Release arenas rose in Wood City as the Ability User Tournament venue filled with spectators and reporters.
• High-ranking officials from various countries gathered on the raised platform, while Hawking sat in golden armor as the tournament's final opponent.

Hawking opened the World's First Mutant Tournament by clearing the storm clouds and having Angel announce the preliminary rules. Hawking's Wood Release Clones took charge as referees, the contestants entered their arenas, and the tournament began with matchups secretly arranged to save stronger contestants for the finals.

• Hawking used the Weather Spell to scatter the storm clouds over the island.
• Angel welcomed the crowd and explained the preliminary round rules and conditions for victory.
• Hawking created twenty-six Wood Release Clones to referee the arenas and protect contestants from fatal injuries.
• Angel called the contestants into the venue and announced the first matchups, including Loki versus Kabura and Thor versus Jin Shengxian.
• The preliminary matches began, and Hawking watched after recalling that he had secretly arranged the draw to spread stronger contestants across groups.

Hawking watched the tournament matches and noticed Loki relied on elegant magic rather than daggers, leading him to speculate about this universe’s history. Thor won Arena Three, celebrated with the crowd, and promised to invite Hawking to Asgard, while the finalists remained undecided.

• Contestants battled across twenty-six arenas, and Hawking observed that many had flashy abilities but limited combat skill.
• Hawking noticed Loki used magic to defeat his opponents and considered how this universe’s version of Loki might differ from the one he remembered.
• Thor defeated every opponent in Arena Three in three hammer blows or fewer and was declared its victor.
• Thor proclaimed he would win the tournament for the Norse Gods, then asked for a drink.
• Hawking conjured Thor a beer, and Thor offered to invite him to Asgard if Hawking had time.
• Hawking noted that Thor might still have to defeat Black Marvel before reaching the final, then dismissed his Wood Clone after Arena Three’s matches ended.

Hawking announced that the tournament preliminaries had ended and invited contestants to join Hero Alliance International Company. As spectators left and applicants registered, he departed to secretly decide the finals matchups himself.

• The tournament concluded with twenty-six finalists, including the Asgardians, Namor, S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, and veteran Super Heroes.
• Hawking offered to cover contestants’ expenses, give each a souvenir worth one thousand dollars, and hire interested superpowered contestants.
• Most contestants welcomed the offer, while government leaders, Nick Fury, and other organizations worried that Hero Alliance Company would recruit them first.
• Angel announced that the finals would begin the next morning, with randomly assigned matchups and no time limit.
• Hawking told everyone that a machine would assign the matchups, then used Apparition to leave and plan them himself.

Hawking arranged the first-round matches to protect the Hero Alliance’s contestants and explained to Susan that several competitors were real Asgardian gods. As the contestants prepared for the next fights, Namor sought his weapon, S.H.I.E.L.D. discussed the Asgardians, and Loki hoped to see Thor lose.

• Hawking selected the strongest contestants and arranged the first-round matches to pit many of the Hero Alliance’s people against one another, ensuring at least half would advance.
• Hawking told Susan that Thor, Loki, and the other Asgardians were real beings from Asgard, whom humans had mistaken for gods.
• Namor left the island to retrieve his Vibranium Spear after noticing powerful rivals in the other arenas.
• Nick Fury briefed the five S.H.I.E.L.D. contestants on the Hero Alliance and warned them to watch the mysterious Asgardians.
• The Asgardians ate and drank confidently, while Loki looked forward to Thor being defeated.
• Tony Stark spent time in bed with an ability user he had defeated earlier.

Thor defeated Namor in the opening match of the World's First Mutant Tournament after the two gods mistook each other for humans and fought fiercely. The chapter ended with Thor advancing as the tournament’s first winner.

• Angel announced the main tournament and introduced Thor and Namor as its opening contestants.
• Thor and Namor mistook each other for humans, repeated the same insults, and charged into battle.
• Thor overpowered Namor in close combat, while Namor used his aerial agility and Vibranium Spear to keep fighting.
• Thor summoned lightning that shattered Namor’s energy barrier, then flew after him and knocked him out of the arena.
• Hawking declared Thor the winner of the first match.

After defeating Aquaman Namor, Hawking healed him and offered him a choice between Atlantis being exposed and going to war with humanity or joining Hawking’s company to help the two civilizations coexist. Namor postponed his decision until the conference ended, while the fifth match began between Captain Britain Carter and Fandral.

• Hawking healed Namor after his defeat and revealed that he knew Namor was king of Atlantis and where its capital was.
• Hawking used Apparition to take Namor to the Wooden Tower, where he offered to conceal Atlantis in exchange for Namor joining his company and working toward peaceful coexistence.
• Namor asked to decide after the conference so he could judge humanity’s strength, and Hawking agreed to let him return as a contestant.
• Hawking returned to the arena and learned that Loki, Black Marvel, and Hulk had won the second, third, and fourth matches.
• Captain Britain Carter and Fandral fought in the fifth match, which Hawking considered evenly matched.

The first round of the World's Greatest Ability User Tournament ended with the remaining contestants advancing and the eliminated finalists receiving homes in Manhattan. Hawking hoped the new homes would encourage the Asgardians and S.H.I.E.L.D. agents to settle near his company.

• Captain Carter defeated Fandral after he conceded, and Steve defeated Hogun while wearing the restored Hydra Stomper.
• Human Torch narrowly defeated Iceman in a spectacular clash of fire and ice.
• Spider-Man initially overwhelmed Iron Man, but Tony adapted his tactics and won by keeping Peter at a distance.
• Wolverine, Jessica, Cyclops, Storm, and Hawkeye won their matches against Thing, Deathstrike, Colossus, Shadowcat, and Nightcrawler, respectively.
• Angel announced the first-round results and awarded each of the twenty-six finalists who did not advance a home in Manhattan.
• Hawking privately hoped the nearby homes would persuade the recipients to stay close to his company.

Hawking arranged for the Asgardians and S.H.I.E.L.D. agents to have houses, hoping to recruit them into his Hero Alliance later. He also engineered Thor’s meeting with Jane Foster, leaving Thor smitten and Loki quietly supportive of the match.

• Hawking planned to use the houses to bring the Asgardians closer to Earth and potentially recruit S.H.I.E.L.D. agents who might leave Nick Fury.
• Angel and the staff guided everyone out of the arena and announced that the second round would begin the next morning.
• Thor comforted his eliminated companions, while Sif and Volstagg warned him about Captain Marvel and Hulk.
• Jane Foster stumbled toward Thor, who caught her, introduced himself, and kissed her hand before she invited him to visit her bar.
• Loki suspected Jane’s fall had been arranged but decided to encourage Thor’s interest in her.
• Hawking revealed that he had selected Jane for a part-time job and used magic to arrange her encounter with Thor so Thor would have a reason to remain on Earth.

Thor arrived late for his second-round qualifier against Storm, then defeated her after she surprised him with lightning and he countered with thunder and a stronger storm. Hawking watched the match and reflected on the power behind Thor’s abilities as the audience cheered and government officials grew wary of the superpowered contestants.

• Angel called Thor to the arena and warned that his absence would count as a forfeit, but Thor arrived carrying Jane Foster before the deadline.
• Thor urged Storm to surrender, so Storm summoned dark clouds and struck him repeatedly with lightning.
• Thor endured the lightning, raised his hammer, and blasted Storm out of the sky with thunder.
• Storm formed a storm to push Thor out of the arena, but Thor created a stronger storm that swept her out instead.
• Angel announced Thor’s victory, while Hawking considered the source of Thor’s power and the officials watched with growing concern.

The tournament narrowed its field as Thor, Loki, and Black Marvel advanced, and Tony announced he would end Stark Industries’ weapons production. After a grueling final, Black Marvel defeated Thor and was declared the tournament’s strongest challenger, setting up a match against Saiyan Superman.

• Tony used his knowledge of the Hydra Stomper to shut it down, then pushed Steve out of the ring and advanced.
• Thor defeated Iron Man, who publicly apologized for the harm caused by his weapons and announced Stark Industries would stop making them.
• Loki used magic to defeat Hulk, then pretended to lose to Captain Marvel so Thor would face her in the final.
• Thor defeated Human Torch before fighting Black Marvel in a battle that lasted until nightfall.
• Black Marvel defeated Thor, and Angel announced that she would face Saiyan Superman in the next morning’s final match.

Hawking faced Captain Marvel in the tournament final and chose to fight without transforming into a Great Ape or using a loaded template. He proved he could match her strength, then unleashed a massive fireball as the battle continued.

• Thor predicted that Captain Marvel would win, while Loki suspected Hawking might be stronger than her.
• Before the match, Captain Marvel urged Hawking to transform, but he refused and said he no longer needed to.
• Captain Marvel charged Hawking, but he caught her punch in Sage Mode and countered with a kick that forced her to retreat.
• Hawking activated the Rinnegan and used Sage Art: Great Fireball Technique to send a fireball over a hundred meters wide toward Captain Marvel.

Hawking overwhelmed Black Marvel with Sage-enhanced ninjutsu, then summoned the thousand-meter Wood Release Buddha and struck her with a barrage of enormous fists. Black Marvel was driven into the arena floor beneath the relentless attack.

• Hawking blasted Black Marvel with Fire, Water, Wind, Earth, and Lightning Release techniques while she tried to close in and conserve her light energy.
• Black Marvel punched through Hawking's Water Clone, but Hawking appeared behind her and blasted her into the air with Water Severing Wave.
• Hawking declared the elemental attacks a warm-up, and the spectators cheered for Superman.
• Hawking summoned Wood Release: True Several Thousand Hands, creating a colossal Buddha with countless wooden fists.
• Black Marvel charged the fists but was knocked back into the arena, where Hawking's continuing barrage drove her deeper into the ground.

Hawking defeated Captain Marvel in the tournament, while Aquaman chose to pursue peace between Atlantis and humanity. In a secret Hydra base, Alexander Pierce and Bolivar Trask watched the broadcast and prepared to rely on upgraded Sentinel Robots.

• Aquaman accepted that Atlantis could not defeat Hawking and decided to join the Hero Alliance and seek peaceful coexistence with humanity.
• Hawking used Legilimency on Aquaman, realized that preventing a war had earned him many Justice Points, and saw his progress toward a new Protagonist Template rise to seven-tenths.
• Black Marvel recognized how much Hawking had grown, surrendered, and planned to urge Nick Fury to abandon S.H.I.E.L.D.'s plans against him.
• Angel announced Hawking as the winner over Captain Marvel, and the tournament audience cheered.
• At a secret Hydra base, Alexander Pierce regretted that Hawking and Captain Marvel had not both been exhausted, while Bolivar Trask claimed his upgraded Sentinel Robots could wipe out the ability users.

Pierce had Trask killed after revealing that Hydra had already learned to control the Sentinel Robots and had deployed Quantum Jammers around the tournament island. As Hawking ended the Mutant Tournament, more than ten thousand Hydra-marked Sentinels arrived, leaving him facing an unexpected attack.

• Trask and Pierce discussed using the Sentinel Robots to wipe out the mutants, while Pierce revealed that Hydra had blocked the tournament's spatial portal with Quantum Jammers.
• Pierce shot Trask, explaining that Hydra had already cracked the Sentinels' control method and no longer needed him.
• Hawking announced the end of the Mutant Tournament and its return every three years.
• Hawking discovered that spatial interference had disabled Apparition as transport aircraft approached the island.
• More than ten thousand Sentinel Robots emerged from the aircraft, and the crowd recognized Hydra's emblem as Hawking questioned why the Sentinels were working with Hydra.