American comics: Starting with Luke the Maker

"I thought there was only one Queen?" Strange's gaze shifted to Harry Osborn, who was standing below Ophelia.

"You know that's impossible." Harry shrugged. "I would also love for Ophelia to be the only supremely noble Brood Queen in this world, because that way, as her sole partner, Osborn could exchange a large amount of benefits with the Energy Bank. But things are never always as you wish.

The Brood have multiple swarms, and Ophelia only represents her swarm. According to the research conclusions on the Brood, the Queen is not the ultimate apex of the Brood's evolution. In other words, above the Queen, there are higher evolved forms with even stronger control over the Brood. To distinguish them, we call these evolved forms Brood Kings."

"So…"

"That's right. Osborn and Ophelia are partners. She helps us solve some problems and contributes her strength when needed. In return, Osborn must also unreservedly use the knowledge, technology, and various powers at his disposal to help her evolve.

No Brood Queen wants to be controlled by a King, unless they become the King themselves. I can be more blunt: this is a winner-takes-all war!

Osborn and Ophelia must defeat all their opponents in this war and achieve final victory. Only in this way can we absorb all the research and technology related to the Brood from other competitors, and command the swarms of those other Queens.

Osborn can fail in this war, but failure means falling behind, meaning the advantage is lost! He will gradually be kicked out of the leading group. The same goes for other competitors.

The price is too high, and Osborn can't afford it. But fortunately, Osborn currently has a slight advantage." Harry looked at Strange with a fervent gaze.

"Me?" Strange pointed at himself in astonishment under Harry's eager gaze.

"Yes, you." Harry nodded, explaining in a light tone, "Because of you, we discovered the Annihilation Brood, another equally powerful new Brood. And Osborn and Ophelia have had two collaborations with the Strange Corps, and those two collaborations were quite pleasant for both sides.

So, you see, the previous two collaborations led to this meeting. Although it can only be a brief exclusive, it is already a huge advantage for us. I wouldn't dare say that taking the first step leads to taking every step, but I believe Osborn's researchers will be able to completely consolidate the early advantage."

"Sounds lucky. But I want to ask, did someone arrange this competition for you? Or did some kind of rule lead to this competition?" Strange crossed his arms, propped his chin with one hand, and stroked his jaw, somewhat curious. "Is it the Energy Bank of this universe? Or…"

"It's Hebron." Harry gave the answer directly in the face of Strange's surprised eyes. Seeing Strange's somewhat astonished look, Harry spread his hands and replied, "For you, who has joined the Strange Corps, there is nothing to hide. Because as long as you are still in this group, you will eventually deal with the Energy Bank, the Time Administration Bureau, and Hebron. This is unavoidable.

Hebron authorizes technology and sells equipment to companies like us, but at the same time, it also sets the rules. It will select a group of companies and research institutions and authorize the same technology to them. If, within the specified time, any institution or company can reach the standards it sets, then they can advance to the next stage, receive more knowledge from Hebron, and access more technology. If they perform exceptionally well, they can even make certain requests to Hebron, and as long as they are not excessive, they will definitely be satisfied.

These institutions and companies will also receive support and orders from Hebron's various partners at each stage, and gradually grow stronger. It can be said that as long as they can continue to advance and maintain a vigorous and lasting research breakthrough capability, then there is no need to worry about anything, whether it is the diffusion and application of technology or the sales of products.

But this is for the successful!

If you are content with the status quo or your research capabilities fall behind, you can still survive under Hebron's rules, but if there are no accidents, under Hebron and its subordinate cooperation institutions and enterprises' explosive technological updates, you will start to fall behind rapidly, then continuously sink, and eventually be completely eliminated.

The reason Osborn can get to this point, besides being one of Hebron's earliest cooperative enterprises, is also because we seized this opportunity and recruited various smart people and talents from the multiverse.

To put it bluntly, Osborn is now one of the top-tier companies on Hebron's list. And the research and technology represented by Ophelia are Osborn's current important core project. I firmly believe that with Osborn's ability to resist risks, a major failure will not lead us to decline completely, but it will inevitably hurt our foundations. So, please believe in our sincerity and help. We are mutually beneficial and can completely avoid unnecessary suspicion."

"That's a pointed remark." Strange gave a wry smile, pointing to the surrounding embryo jars. "My personality is suspicious, but I still know how to assess the situation. Since the me here asked me to find you, then our trust can be a little more solid. Let's talk about the plan, how are these embryos going to be used?"

"That depends on your choice." It was Ophelia who spoke, her mental power gently touching Strange's spirit, transforming into a gentle female voice, "They are embryos that have been modified and optimized by Osborn, and have multiple forms. If they are all used to simply hatch and then swarm, it would be a waste of their potential."

"What do you mean?" Strange was a little puzzled.

"I can control the form in which they hatch. In your words, is this called Brood units? I can help you hatch Brood with corresponding uses according to your needs. I have mastered the genetic blueprints of various lives and can combine them.

It can be a simple parasitic Brood that grows by devouring the nutrients of the host, or it can be like a symbiote, becoming an alternative symbiotic insect suit that coexists with the host. I can also provide you with a swarm consciousness network for communication with people on the same side on the battlefield. As for other things including super-powered genes, magical Brood, assassination, infiltration, self-destruction, and combat, those are what my children excel at." Ophelia explained to Strange unhurriedly.

"Sounds reliable." Strange's tense mood eased a little.

"I will accompany you this time, and when necessary, I can completely transform into an insect suit and use my power to amplify you. Theoretically, as long as we don't encounter omnipotent gods, our safety can be guaranteed," Ophelia said.

"Can we beat omnipotent gods?" Strange was a little stunned.

"I mean, we can escape." Ophelia's words left Strange speechless. (End of chapter)