The white tethered lights of the Umbrella Hive lab felt comfortingly grounding after the shifting mists of the Sefirah Castle. Aryan snapped his eyes open, his consciousness anchoring back into his physical form with the seamlessness of a waking dream. At the exact same microsecond, Wanda Maximoff's eyes flared with a fading scarlet glow as she too returned from the "Boardroom of the Gods."
They were standing barely a foot apart. The silence of the lab was absolute, save for the distant, almost subliminal hum of the Hive's cooling fans. They looked at each other, two people who had just spent what felt like hours in a divine realm, only to find that in the physical world, the coffee on the desk was still steaming.
Aryan just grinned, a look of pure triumph on his face.
Wanda lunged forward, throwing her arms around his neck and letting out a series of bright giggles that echoed off the reinforced glass walls.
"Fifteen minutes," she whispered into his ear, her voice trembling with a mix of adrenaline and sheer amusement. "We just redefined the fate of three nations and brokered immortality and the clock hasn't even moved."
Aryan pulled her closer, his hands resting on her waist, the warmth of her body a real thing. "Time is a suggestion when you're friends with the Fool, darling." He leaned in, stealing a soft kiss that tasted of the ozone and cherry blossoms that always seemed to linger around Wanda's magic. "Are you ready to play God for our family?"
"Only if I get a better title than 'High Priestess,'" she teased, nipping at his lower lip before pulling away just enough to look at him, her green eyes sparkling.
The intimate moment was interrupted by an exaggerated suffering groan from the doorway.
"Seriously? I leave for ten minutes to get a protein shake and I come back to the final scene of a romance novel?"
Pietro Maximoff was leaning against the doorframe, a silver blur of motion that had finally settled into a pose of casual annoyance. Beside him stood Sharon Carter, who was looking at the couple with a mix of professional curiosity and a hidden smile. Pietro had long ago accepted the fact that Aryan was the impossibly wealthy brother in law who.
"Come in, speedster. And Sharon, thank you for coming," Aryan said, smoothly transitioning from 'romantic lead' to 'Master of the Hive.'
Aryan led them toward the center of the lab, away from the sensitive diagnostic equipment. He leaned back against a heavy workstation, his expression shifting from a relaxed grin to the focused intensity of a man who had just brokered a deal for the world's soul.
"I'm going to skip the long winded explanation because we have work to do," Aryan began, his voice dropping into a serious register. "You both know I've been working with Stark. What you don't know is the scale of the organization we've formed. We call it the Tarot Club. It's a circle of the most powerful individuals on the planet… Tony, a few kings and a few others you'll meet soon. Wanda and I are already at the center of it."
Pietro crossed his arms, his foot tapping at a superhuman frequency against the floor. "The Tarot Club? Sounds like a high stakes poker game for billionaires and royalty. What's that got to do with us?"
"Everything," Aryan said firmly. "I just returned from a summit where I secured the safety of our inner circle. I have paid an incredibly high price to buy a permanent upgrade for the three of you." He looked at them, his gaze intense. "I've secured your lives for the next five hundred years."
Sharon's eyes narrowed, her S.H.I.E.L.D. trained brain immediately looking for the catch. "Five hundred years? Aryan, that's biologically impossible. Even the most advanced longevity research we've seen only adds a few decades and usually, the side effects are horrific."
"This isn't a S.H.I.E.L.D. project, Sharon. This is a Soul Anchor," Aryan explained. "The power I transferred Wanda and Pietro before was the key to unlock the door to their potential. This... this is to ensure you can walk through it for the next five centuries."
He turned to Sharon first. "For you, this will be a dual layered power. First, it grants the foundation of a Super Soldier, strength, speed and durability. But the second part is the Beta Level High Speed Regeneration. It's a passive force that repairs your body in real time and freezes you in your absolute physical prime."
Then he looked at the twins. "For you two, this bypasses the initial serum. You already have the foundation. This upgrade layers the Beta Level Regeneration on top, completing the process. You'll live for five centuries as you are right now."
Pietro looked at Wanda, then back at Aryan. "Five hundred years... and no DNA change? No turning into a green monster or some government lab experiment?"
"None," Aryan confirmed. "No scientist, no scanner and no government can find a trace of this power in your blood because it's not in your blood… it's in your essence. It's the ultimate invisible armor. But there's a specific way to activate it."
Wanda stepped forward, a mischievous glint in her eyes as she leaned her hip against a lab table. "And this is where the fun starts. He's going to make you join his 'congregation' all over again."
She looked at Sharon, her smile widening. "Honestly, Sharon, look at him. With that serious face and the way he's standing, he looks like he's about to start a cult right here in the Hive."
Aryan let out a frustrated huff as Wanda started giggling. "It's a resonant authorization, Wanda! Stop making it sound like I'm passing out brochures."
"Oh, it's a cult," Wanda laughed, turning to Sharon. "He's going to make us touch him and chant lines about 'Fools' and 'Mysterious Rulers.' I hope you're ready, Sharon, because our 'Master' here is about to get very dramatic. Pietro and I have already been through the initiation once."
Sharon couldn't help it, a genuine laugh broke through her professional mask. "A cult leader? I was wondering when your ego would finally take you in that direction, Aryan. Do we get matching robes, or just immortality? Is there a mandatory donation of my life savings, or just my soul?"
"I'm trying to secure your futures for five centuries!" Aryan protested, though he was starting to grin himself. "Honorifics are the only way the power recognizes you. It's a metaphysical handshake. So, if you're done teasing the man who just bought you five hundred years of youth, put your hands on my shoulders and get ready to chant."
Pietro rolled his eyes, but he stepped forward, a grudging curiosity winning out over his skepticism. "Alright, 'Grandmaster.' Let's hear the magic words again. But if I have to start wearing a hood this time, I'm out."
Aryan placed a hand on his shoulder, his expression becoming serious again. "I've bought three 'Blessings.' For Sharon, the full package. For you two, the final piece. It's an anchor for the soul. It makes you immortal and nearly impossible to kill. Now, let's begin."