The losses were catastrophic.
More importantly, Johnny Blaze had died on the spot.
After the disaster, firefighters rushed to contain the flames while emergency crews worked frantically to save the injured. Amid the chaos, Johnny stood nearby in a daze.
He was dead.
Actually dead.
And judging by the fact that nobody seemed capable of seeing him, he was pretty sure he was a soul now.
How was that possible?
Wasn't his soul supposed to belong to a devil?
Had the devil really come to collect that quickly?
"Johnny Blaze..."
A figure emerged from the darkness.
Drex Valen.
Nothing about him looked remotely trustworthy, and he had no intention of pretending otherwise.
"The hell are you supposed to be?"
Johnny instinctively recoiled.
Being dead had done nothing to improve his nerves.
"What am I?" Drex replied calmly. "I am the Lord of the Black Hole Dimension. The destroyer of time, space, matter, energy, fate, life, and death. The ultimate force of devastation in the universe. The God of Destruction and Ruin."
His tone carried no exaggeration.
It was simply a statement of fact.
Given the nature of his power and what he had become, the title fit perfectly.
Although, admittedly, it sounded suspiciously close to stepping on someone else's territory.
Drex suddenly froze.
The moment he spoke that divine title aloud, a subtle tremor rippled across the Multiverse.
Something changed.
He could feel it instantly.
Molecules vibrated before his awareness.
Elements drifting through space revealed themselves.
The movements of particles, their trajectories, cycles, and governing laws unfolded with perfect clarity.
Then his perception expanded even further.
For a brief moment, it felt as though he could see the fundamental structure of everything.
How reality was assembled.
How existence functioned.
How the universe operated beneath its surface.
It was as if the world had always been hidden behind an impossibly thick veil, obscuring its true nature.
Now the veil was gone.
The mysteries remained, but they were no longer invisible.
At that moment, Drex officially stepped into the ranks of cosmic gods.
He had become one of Marvel's true Universal-level entities.
In truth, his power reserves and accumulated energy had surpassed that threshold long ago.
By raw strength alone, he had already crossed it.
Yet for all this time, he had remained stranded at the doorway, unable to take the final step.
Now he finally understood why.
The missing piece was what the cosmic beings of the universe called an anchor.
Within Marvel's cosmology, reaching the level of a Universal cosmic entity meant transcending the limits of ordinary life entirely.
It was the first true step into godhood.
Not the kind claimed by planetary deities or self-proclaimed tyrants.
Something vastly greater.
A realm where power itself exceeded what normal minds and bodies could safely contain.
Enough power would inevitably reshape a person's thoughts, desires, and identity.
Without realizing it, they could become something unrecognizable.
That principle applied across every universe.
Because of that, any being who reached the Universal level required an anchor.
Something uniquely their own.
A purpose.
A passion.
A responsibility.
An obsession.
Anything capable of preventing them from losing themselves to endless power and endless time.
The Celestials never struggled with this problem.
The universe assigned their duties from birth.
Every Celestial instinctively understood its role within creation.
In a sense, they were cosmic civil servants, carrying out their responsibilities for billions of years without deviation.
Their anchor came preinstalled.
Galactus had no such issue either.
His purpose was simple.
To consume.
He was eternally hungry, forever traveling from world to world, devouring planets and releasing energy back into the cosmic ecosystem.
There was an old saying that people only overthink things when they were too comfortable.
Galactus never had that luxury.
An eternally starving cosmic god had no spare time for existential crises.
The Elders of the Universe offered a better example.
They had ascended after birth.
To preserve their identities, each developed an obsession that anchored them to themselves.
The Grandmaster's addiction to gambling bordered on madness. More than once, he had nearly wagered away his own existence.
The Collector possessed an equally notorious obsession with collecting rare treasures.
Across the universe, everyone knew his reputation.
Power alone wasn't enough to become a god.
Neither was enlightenment.
One needed an anchor.
Something that ensured no amount of strength could erase the self.
Until now, Drex had never known what his own obsession might be.
Today, he found one.
Destruction.
Ruin.
The instant he became a true cosmic god of this universe, reality itself responded.
A divine office was assigned to him automatically.
This wasn't the same as villains gaining a little power and declaring themselves gods.
Nor was it comparable to planetary skyfathers like Odin or Zeus.
This was an official designation granted by the universe itself.
A cosmic authority recognized by reality.
From this day forward, other cosmic entities would know him by a single title.
The God of Destruction and Ruin.
"...Damn it."
Drex rubbed his forehead.
"If I'd known it was this easy, I would've picked God of Love."
He had never expected ascension to work like this.
Apparently, if one's power reached the required level, the universe was more than willing to hand out divine portfolios.
Even more importantly, his title wasn't recognized by a single universe.
It was acknowledged across the Multiverse.
Unless he someday surpassed the Multiverse itself, the position would continue receiving its support and protection.
"That's quite an unexpected bonus..."
Because of his upbringing, Drex had never been obsessed with calling himself a god.
Unlike Loki, it wasn't a title he felt compelled to repeat every five minutes.
His original plan had been simple.
Strengthen the Black Hole Dimension.
Collect souls.
Expand his influence.
Instead, he had accidentally become a genuine multiversal deity.
He remained far beyond the level of an ordinary Universal entity, but he could clearly sense the Multiverse's willingness.
If he accepted, it would elevate him fully into the absolute embodiment of destruction and ruin.
Essentially, reality was prepared to kick Galactus out of the position and hand the job to him.
Yeah, right.
As if he'd agree to that.
Accepting such a role would chain him permanently to this Multiverse.
Drex intended to reach Multiversal and Omniversal heights one day.
He had no interest in trading limitless potential for a gilded cage.
Nearby, Johnny Blaze stood frozen.
Lord of the Black Hole Dimension.
God of Destruction and Ruin.
Those titles sounded absurdly overwhelming.
Johnny suddenly found himself missing Mephisto.
A lot.
Compared to whatever stood before him now, Mephisto seemed almost comforting.
What kind of cosmic nightmare had taken an interest in him?
Then Drex spoke.
"Become my Rider."
His eyes locked onto Johnny's soul.
"Hunt the souls of sinners for me."
Drex wanted him.
Not merely because of his power.
Because Johnny Blaze himself was worth claiming.