American Comics: Multiverse of Madness

382. Night Exploration of the Dragon’s Lair.

Late at night, under a moonless sky with a chilling breeze.

In the dense forest on the outskirts of the city, a faint, eerie green light suddenly appeared, resembling ghostly flames. The light didn't disturb any of the surrounding creatures. Within the glow, four silhouettes gradually materialized, becoming solid.

After a brief moment of silence, the group took in their unfamiliar surroundings with expressions of amazement.

"Wow... so this is teleportation magic? I've always dreamed of experiencing it firsthand, and I can't believe it's actually happening now," Sam remarked, marveling at the eerie forest around them.

Dean, on the other hand, focused on the playing card they had touched earlier. He noticed that the once-pristine card had now crumbled to ash.

"It's a consumable," Alex explained, noticing Dean's gaze. "All magic comes at a cost. Sometimes, we use specific materials to cast spells—it makes things a bit easier."

Constantine's mystical sorcery adapted well to the magical energy of this universe, making it highly efficient. However, Zatanna's backwards incantations weren't nearly as seamless to use here.

"So what do we do now? Find that monster's lair and charge in to take them down?" Jo couldn't help but ask, eager to test the power of her ring.

"The real question is, how do we find the lair?"

Dean turned his attention to Alex.

"Couldn't you just teleport us directly to the bunker's entrance?"

"Teleportation coordinates are fixed, and the range is large. This is my first time in your world, and I've never been here before. I couldn't navigate with precision, so I relied on the coordinates Sam provided," Alex replied.

"No problem," Sam interjected confidently.

"If the coordinates are stable, I can determine the general direction. The bunker isn't far from here. I know the way—follow me."

As they followed Sam, his keen intellect quickly became apparent. Not only had he memorized the entire map, but he also managed to match the map's landmarks to their real-world counterparts seamlessly.

For most people, venturing into an unfamiliar forest would mean losing all sense of direction. But Sam accurately determined their position and guided the group toward their destination with remarkable precision.

Sure enough, it wasn't long before they discovered a hidden entrance, concealed beneath overgrown vegetation.

The area clearly hadn't been disturbed in years. The surrounding weeds were so thick that it would have been impossible to notice the entrance without careful inspection.

Nearby, there were remnants of old wooden structures, long abandoned. The faded spray-painted letters on them were illegible.

"This should be the place. Let's hope we've got the right spot," Sam said, staring into the pitch-black entrance as he retrieved a flashlight from his pack.

Seeing this, Alex opened his mouth to speak but ultimately said nothing.

Alex had always been curious about one thing: for people like the Winchesters, who often sneaked into enemy lairs, why did they insist on using flashlights? Lighting up a dark space seemed like an invitation to reveal their position.

Then again, considering the enhanced senses of most dark creatures, it was likely the monsters were already aware of their presence the moment they entered.

And since many of these creatures had night vision, it might actually make more sense to boldly walk in rather than stumble around in the dark.

The group entered the bunker one after the other. Dean always went first, followed by Sam, with Alex bringing up the rear.

As soon as they stepped inside, an overwhelming stench assaulted their senses, causing everyone to wrinkle their noses.

"I'm not sure if this counts as a proper lair, but it's close enough. I didn't expect it to be like this inside," Sam said, covering his nose while shining his flashlight around.

The bunker was far larger than they had imagined, with a labyrinth of interconnected passages. There were also abandoned storage rooms and chambers scattered throughout.

Everything was covered in a thick layer of dust. Some rooms had walls entirely draped in cobwebs, exuding an air of decay.

"This place is definitely starting to feel creepy," Jo remarked as they advanced further into the labyrinth.

Her sharp eyes soon spotted a faint golden glow emanating from one of the rooms ahead.

"Look there."

The group quickly moved forward and entered a large room. On a long table draped with a red cloth lay a mountain of golden jewelry and treasures.

Dean walked over to the table, picking up a golden bracelet to examine it closely.

"Well, I guess there really is a dragon here. Now I understand why people in ancient times wanted to slay dragons so badly. This hoard could let an ordinary person live in luxury for half a lifetime."

With that, Dean grabbed a handful of the gold and began stuffing it into his pockets.

"There's no need to rush, Dean," Sam said, patting him on the shoulder. "Once we deal with the dragon, all this treasure will be ours. We can even set some aside as hush money for the girls—assuming they're still alive."

With that, Sam turned and started walking in another direction.

Sam didn't place much importance on the treasure. In their line of work, even if they had money, spending it wasn't easy. After all, impersonating the FBI was no minor offense. Trying to visit high-end places would likely lead to their records being exposed.

"Wait!"

Suddenly, Jo's ears twitched.

"Do you hear something?"

The group exchanged glances and fell silent, holding their breaths to listen carefully to their surroundings.

Before long, faint sobbing could be heard, barely discernible. It sounded like a girl crying—likely one of the kidnapped women.

"The sound is coming from over there," Sam whispered, pointing to a passageway on their right.

Without hesitation, the group shared a quick look and then dashed toward the source of the sound.

At this moment, even the noise of their footsteps potentially alerting the enemy didn't matter. Once they confirmed the presence of survivors, their top priority was ensuring the girls' safety.

After about five minutes of running, the crying grew fainter, as the source likely heard the group's approach.

"Hello? Is someone there?"

A weak voice called out. Hearing this, Dean quickened his pace.

Turning a corner, their view opened up to a large, empty room. In the center stood a massive iron cage, forged from steel bars, with six girls locked inside.

"Hey, they're here!"

Dean rushed to the cage, scanning its interior.

Most of the girls appeared malnourished but had not suffered any severe injuries, which brought Dean a small sense of relief.

In their hunts, Dean and Sam most dreaded situations where they found the location but arrived too late to save the victims.

"Don't worry. We'll get you out of here," Dean reassured the girls before gripping the cage and trying to bend the bars to create an escape path.

"Hurry up! They'll be back soon," one of the girls urged.

"They?"

Alex raised an eyebrow.

Dean, however, was too focused on the cage to notice, straining to break the bars. Yet, despite his efforts, the cage remained completely intact.

After one last attempt, Dean sighed and turned to the others.

"Are you all just going to stand there and watch?"

"This cage is specially made," Sam observed, noting the metal wasn't ordinary but a reinforced alloy, not easily broken.

Hearing this, Dean turned to Alex.

"What about our resident wizard? Got any spells to open this thing, like a lock-picking charm?"

"First of all, it's 'Alohomora.' Secondly, this cage doesn't even have a lock," Alex said calmly, examining the cage's welded joints and the faint impressions of clawed hands.

"The dragon opens the cage by using extreme heat to melt the steel. Once the girls are inside, it reforges the bars by hand to seal them shut," Alex explained.

"Then why don't you do the same?" Sam asked.

"I don't need to go to such lengths," Alex replied, raising his right fist and pointing it at the cage.

Thanks to the energy-conversion mechanism of his time controller, Alex could channel various types of magic. After absorbing the Shadow King's powers, his repertoire of abilities had grown significantly.

With his fist clenched tightly, Alex suddenly opened his hand. In an instant, the bars of the cage were forcibly wrenched apart by an unseen force, creating an opening wide enough for an adult to pass through.

"Cool! Magneto vibes!" Sam clapped his hands with a grin before rushing to help the girls out one by one.

"Quick, let's get out of here!"

Just as they were about to leave, a sense of impending danger washed over everyone.

Standing at the back, Alex immediately sensed the source of the threat. He turned slightly, only to be met with a terrifying blaze of fire.

The dimly lit room was suddenly engulfed in a sea of flames, illuminating everything in an intense glow.

"Alex!" Jo cried out, instinctively stepping forward, only to be forced back by the scorching heat.

The flames completely engulfed Alex, rising over two meters high. Outside the inferno, the others could only see a dark, indistinct figure amidst the crackling fire.

The scene left everyone stunned; no one had expected the dragon to ambush them so suddenly.

The one spewing fire appeared to be a young man in his twenties, his face twisted into a menacing sneer as flames poured from his mouth.

After more than ten seconds of relentless fire, the man finally stopped, assuming the intruder had been reduced to ash. However, as the flames subsided, the sight that greeted him froze his smirk in place.

.....

30 advanced chapters on p@treaon
For advance chapters: /Uchiha_Itachi007 (replace @ with a)
383. Slaying the Dragon.
384. A Good Chance of Winning.
385. Farewell.
386. Zombie Siege!
387. The Only Hope.