- Manhattan, New York City-
Peter tugged on his bandages and violently pulled a group of Chitauri foot soldiers. Unceremoniously crashing them into the building at high speed, killing them instantly.
His Kagune pulsed with a crimson glow. The four killer organs extended from the base of his spine into four tendrils that flowed around his form. One of his tendrils impulsively stabbed into a groaning Chitauri near him. The other two liquefied into a mass of liquid RC cells that resembled blood before crystallizing into large crimson wing-like constructs that shot out sharp crystallized shards at the Chitauri that drew near him. The last tendril impaled itself into the side of the building, anchoring into the edge of the building walls above the city skyline.
Blue Cypher buzzed in the back of his mindscape, compiling data regarding whatever this was. Filtering through thousands of clusters of data streams, Cypher tried puzzle together the events that could explain an alien invasion. Aside from the glaringly obvious hole in the sky that spat out alien invaders that attacked anything that moved, the net wasn't being all that helpful.
The best way Peter could figure things out would be to head to the source.
And that was easier said than done, as the swarms coming out of them were attacking in waves.
Peter's gaze tracked the swarms as he prepared himself for the inevitable battle ahead. He sent another mental ping to Garfield to keep May safe. It wasn't needed, of course. The cat had already ensured that his aunt would be safe, having sealed her into a diamond-hard carapace made from its own biomass within the room to ensure she could withstand the building collapsing on her.
Nothing short of being dropped from orbit would leave a dent in it.
Garfield's ability was truly versatile. When given instructions with the help of a Cypher, using the treasure trove of knowledge from the metaverse made for an effective combo.
Peter let out a slow, determined breath as a swarm of Chitauri foot soldiers closed in.
'They're like bugs,' Peter thought to himself.
He buckled his knees as webbed cracks formed on the cement beneath his feet.
Peter blitzed out of focus in a burst of speed, appearing in front of a group of Chitauri in the air before ripping them apart with his Kagune, bandages, and good old fists to faces. He used their bodies and the surrounding skyscrapers for footing to navigate the swarm in the air. His makeshift liquid-like crystal wings helped him glide, and he used the appendages propel himself forward.
Speed was his advantage. He moved too fast for the Chitauri to keep up with him as he tore through them in the air.
His actions drew the attention of a wandering leviathan. The metallic serpentine creature turned in the air, toppling a few buildings as it locked in on him as a threat. It swooped low, metallic, fleshy jaws agape to crush Peter in its maw.
Peter spun in the air as countless crystal shards shot out from his Kagune, impaling the Chitauri foot soldiers as he did. He commanded his bandages to latch onto those near him, pulling them close and cashing them in together in a mash of flesh and armor.
He planned to use it as a platform to propel himself at the descending leviathan.
Peter clenched his right hand into a fist hard enough for his fingers to dig into his palm, drawing blood. The crimson liquid flowed out, crawling on his palm and then flowing above his wrist until it reached his shoulders. It then crystallized, forming hexagonal-like patterns, reinforcing Peter's arm with crystalline blood armor. His bandages bind themselves over the blood armor for an added edge.
He needed this for the next part.
A shockwave erupted in the air as Peter lunged at the giant alien snake, using the meshed bodies of the Chitauri as a platform to propel himself forward.
{Will of Saitama: Active}
He drew his arm back, clenching his fist before letting loose. Hopefully, this time he could throw a punch this his arm still intact.
Boom!
-0000000000-
-Else Where-
New York was reduced to rubble, explosions and smoke. Swarms of Chitauri flew above the city skies, attacking anything within their sights. The titanic leviathans slithered among the many towering buildings through the air, dispatching foot soldiers that made up the bulk of their ground forces.
Below in the streets, people ran in panic and fear, seeking shelter in the nearest buildings they could find.
One unlucky Leviathan was struck down by a barrage of lightning strikes that rained on the Chitauri from a rapidly forming storm. Floating above the city, with a form shrouded in electricity, was the mutant Ororo Monroe, known to some as Storm. Long bluish-white electric arcs of energy complimented her silver hair and glowing eyes now. She was dressed in a black and white suit with an X insignia on the chest, complete with a cape. She used her mutant ability to conjure lightning storms and streaks to attack the Chitahuri.
A miniature tornado surrounded her form, sweeping up any foot soldier that came too close to her.
As the leviathan fell, its body crackling with electricity, large pillars of ice shot up from the surrounding buildings to hold it in place, shielding the civilians below as they ran for cover. Bobby Drake slid down on a rapidly forming path made of ice in the air, using his own abilities to attack the Chitauri foot soldiers.
Bolts of plasma bounced off his walls of ice.
The swarms of foot soldiers that descended onto the crowd were picked out at a rapid pace by powerful ruby beams. The concussive beam had enough force to carve their armor into their chests. Scott Summers discharged concentrated beam after beam from his eyes, regulating each beam with controlled efficiency filtered through his visors.
Jean Gray stood near him. She telekinetically lifted cars to shield them from an onslaught of plasma bolts.
"This is crazy!" Kat shouted as she phased through one of the cars Jean lifted. "Aliens are real!"
All three of them had the standard yellow and black combat suits gifted to X-Men members upon their recruitment into the team. Their suits also had the signature silver X insignia on their chests.
"Any word from the professor yet?" Scott asked Jean. He continued to take our foot soldiers with his optic beams.
"They're on their way…They'll be here in thirty minutes." Jean replied, she flung a car at a group of advancing foot soldiers, crushing them underneath. A few lightning bolts struck the car, igniting its fuel reserves, resulting in a massive explosion that took out some more of the Chitauri.
Bobby slid in on his icy path to freeze what was left of them before erecting are massive wall of ice around them. He slid off to meet more soldiers without pause, their plasma bolts doing little damage to his icy figure.
"We just have to hold them off until the rest of the team gets here." Storm declared as she descended from the sky. "Jean, are you getting anything from them?"
"No, it's difficult to make out—it's like they're all thinking the same thing. It's too loud in their heads. They all respond to something, a signal that drives them, but there are too many and there to spread out to tell what it is. My best guess is it has something to do with that hole in the sky," Jean replied, her arms spread wide as stone debris, cars, and other surrounding objects rose to form another defensive barricade around the icy wall.
"That's just creepy," Kat commented before asking Jean. "Is there anything you can do about it? Maybe cut off the signal or mess with them or something."
"No," Jean answered. "Unless I can reach the source, I can't do much. I can try but—"
"Don't, it's too dangerous, we don't know what we're dealing with yet. We need a plan… So, what's the plan, Monroe?" Scott asked, turning to Storm.
"We help," Storm stated simply. "Save as many as we can and help keep the creature's attention on us, keep them in the city."
"We're all on the same page here about the aliens from outer space thing, right?" Kat asked, drawing everyone's deadpan gaze to her. "Hey, I'm just saying. These are actual aliens here on Earth. Guess that answers the whole, are we alone in the universe question."
"Ah, guys," Jean interrupted them, her voice laced with urgency, she held her head in discomfort.
Scott moved forward and supported her shoulders.
"Jean? Are you alright?" Scott asked, concern evident his actions.
Jean's head buzzed. Several sudden and ominous presences made themselves known to her psychic senses. She gritted her teeth, eyes widening, and cursed.
"Oh, shit."
Before she had the chance to explain, a thunderous roar echoed through the streets as a swift figure shot past the skyline, crashing into the leviathan held up by Bobby's ice pillars. The ice pillars shattered, and the leviathan came crashing into the streets below.
Scott reacted quickly by maximizing his optic beams by blasting the falling pillars of ice. Storm conjured up mini tornadoes to blow some of them away. Jean erected a psychic shield around them. Bobby lunged forward to a stop ahead of his companions, he raised his hands and blasted a steady stream of ice at the falling leviathan, hoping to slow its descent.
The titanic leviathan tumbled through the skyscrapers. The pillars of ice did little to halt its fall.
When the dust cleared, the group was left staring at the crushed face of the metal monster. There was an unsettling calm as they checked each other for injuries before a crunching echo filled the streets. The leviathan's armored shell burst open from the inside as a hulking green mass of muscle and rage tore its way out of the leviathan's neck.
"RAAAAAR!" Hulk raged as broke out.
He stood on the head of the metal beast and growled at the X-Men.
Jean was the first to act. "Nobody moves, don't attack. Any threatening movements and it will attack us. It's only here for the…aliens."
"You, sure about that, Red? Cause I don't like the way this guy's staring at me," Bobby asked his friend, his hands held up in preparation. Scott followed his lead as his hands were at the ready by his visor, his optic beam glinting behind the crimson glasses, ready to be unleased.
After a short but intense standoff, a barrage of bright blue lightning streaks showered the green Goliath, in a blur of motion, something crashed into the Hulk, sending him flying across the street and into another building.
The group turned in unison to Storm.
"That wasn't me." Storm quickly stated.
A crackle of energy got their attention once more. The space above the leviathan where the Hulk once stood moments ago was sliced apart as two new figures made their way out of the crack in space.
A beautiful blond woman in green armor was accompanied by a large bald man in black armor covered in Nordic tattoos. In his hand he held a rather imposing battleaxe with glowing Nordic runes carved skillfully into its surface. The axe made the giant of a man look small by comparison.
They regarded the X-man with a passing glance.
"Take care of the mortals, my Executioner, I must tend to the beast with my beloved." The blond Asgardian turned and ordered the large man as she vanished in a wisp of green energy after the trail of lightning and destruction.
The large, tattooed man jumped off the Leviathan's head, brandishing his weapon. He walked imposingly towards the mutants. His intentions were clear as he glared at each of the X-Men.
"What about him?" Scott asked Jean.
"Him we can attack," Jean replied, already telekinetically lifting the surrounding objects.
"Great. I don't even know what's going on anymore." Bobby sighed, exasperated. The Iceman blasted forward, meeting the Norse warrior in frost-filled fury. The temperature around his icy form dropped to a chilling degree as the surrounding air froze.
He shot a steady stream of frost at the man.
The Executioner met the icy teen with agility unfitting to his stature. He weaved past the stream of frost and clashed with the Iceman in the air, batting the mutant aside. He used his battle axe to slice through the objects Jean launched at him, only to be pushed back by a concentrated blast of concussive force from Scott's optic beams.
The axe-wielding Asgardian shielded himself from the optic beam with his axe. Before he could retaliate, he caught sight of Storms hovering, her white glowing eyes glaring at him from the air. The storm bent to her will as lightning rained from the sky on the Asgardian warrior who brought his axe up in defense.
Strom battered him with lightning after lightning, hoping to end the fight quickly.
When the lightning cleared, however, the executioner's form remained unhurt. His armor was slightly singed and smoking from the attacks, and his axe glowed and crackled with blue and red ambient energy absorbed from the subsequent attacks.
He gave the mutants an expressionless stare, and he brought his weapon high above his head.
"Good," he commented, his deep voice held a hint of satisfaction.
He brought his crackling weapon down, amplifying and releasing the energies stored within, resulting in a violent, explosive shockwave of concussive force and electricity.
BOOM!
-000000000-
Yuriko Watanabe threw the alien out the train window as the locomotive sped through the city. The bridge it was on shook as it attacking Chitauri foot soldiers continued to board. The aliens crawled through windows, broke through the roof of the train and crawled up from under the floor to attack any unlucky passenger they came across.
Yuriko tried her best to fight off the remnants of Chitauri foot soldiers who latched onto the train. Her compartment filled with students and teachers huddled in a corner at the end next to a sealed door.
Yuriko didn't know what these creatures were and where they came from, but one thing was for certain—they weren't here for peaceful coexistence.
She unloaded her last magazine into a Chitauri until the gun clicked. She threw the gun at an advancing foot soldier, ripping out one of the seats to shield herself from the plasma bolts as she ran at the creature. The chair did little against the bolts—she could feel the heat burning her chest as a bolt struck her, but it did little to stop her.
The bolt barely got under her skin.
With a grunt, she discarded the seat and met the Chitauri foot soldiers with her fists. She severely underestimated her physical strength because her punch tore through the chest cavity of the Chitauri foot soldier without much resistance.
She tossed it aside before moving on to the next one, and then the next. Her heart hammered in her chest. Her breath hitched as she tore them apart. She hardly noticed the small grin that began to creep up on her face.
She could feel her blood boiling beneath her skin, but she was against drawing on the powers of the shard even now. She grabbed the last one by its weapon, bending the alien steel before punching it in the face, ending its life with a sickening crack.
More foot soldiers boarded the platform ahead as the looming shadow of a leviathan hovered above the train. It seemed as if everyone on the carts ahead were dead, if the foot soldiers rushing down to her were any indication.
She turned to warn the students and teachers behind her, but something else got her attention. The sounds of the looming creature grew louder. It was descending on the train she realized as the train turned around the corner.
She turned to the students behind her to warn them.
"Get down!" She called out, running to the cowering students to protect them. The NYPD officer managed to get to them in time to hold them down, the teachers joined her, shielding them with their bodies from the blast that followed.
Boom!
Windows shattered as explosions went off outside the train. Thankfully, whatever transpired outside forced the leviathan to crash onto the platform ahead of them. Ripping into it with all its mass.
Ironman shot past the train, unleashing more short missiles onto the leviathan, drawing its attention away from the train.
Without rails, the train was steered off the bridge, violently crashing onto the streets below. Thinking on her feet, Yuriko bit into her palm, feeling her shard vibrate in response. She could feel the flow of blood as it exited her body. She bit into her other palm and then commanded her into whip-like tendrils that she used to hold the teachers and students in place against the walls of the train.
She tightened her grip as the singular blood tendril extended into a net-like structure with spikes digging into the sides of the train, holding teachers and students safely within it.
The train crashed into the street below soon after.
"Hold on tight!"
-000000000-
-Else Where-
The captain fought his way through the waves of Chitauri foot soldiers with nothing but shield, wits, skills, and enhanced physique. After helping Natasha commandeer a Chitauri hover bike to reach Stark Tower, he fought his way to the nearest defensive blockade using the coordinates provided by Jarvis.
"Fifty meters ahead, just around the corner, under the bridge." Jarvis guided him through the earpiece.
He fought his way through the streets. Dodging and weaving swiftly through the plasma bolts and the carnage, using his surroundings to his advantage. Hawkeye provided cover from his newfound nest, taking out any threats to the cap as he could.
With a heave, the captain dodged a shower of bolts, jumping off a car as it exploded, launching him ahead. He dropped into a roll, launching his shield ahead, the trajectory already calculated within his mind, reinforced by his years of experience. The vibranium disk bounced off off one of the oncoming foot soldiers and flew right back into his hands.
His fist met the disoriented alien's head, taking it down with ease. More ran to meet him, and he, without pause, ran to meet them.
The super soldier made quick work of them.
As he dispatched the last one, he reflexively brought his shield up, deflecting a few bullets that bounced off harmlessly.
"HOLD YOUR FIRE! Hold your fire! We got friendlies over there!" someone, presumably the one in charge, shouted over the chaos. Captain America ignored them, opting to take out the remaining Chitauri with extreme efficiency, much to the amazement of the onlookers who just shot at him.
"Cap. You got a big something heading your way," Hawkeye warned.
A shadow fell over the streets as a leviathan descended onto the bridge next to the barricade made by the cops and armed civilians. The alien metal jaws were open as it fell upon a train moving on the bridge.
"Stark, need a little backup here," Cap said calmly, keeping an eye on the beast as more foot soldiers were shot out of its side onto the streets and buildings.
Captain America heard Ironman's voice over the earpiece. "Already on its Cap."
Explosions went off as high-tech billionaire intercepted the leviathan with an array of explosive projectiles, forcing it to miss its intended target. The beast quickly turned, destroying the bridge in its entirety as it chased after Ironman.
The captain brought his shield up to defend himself from the falling debris, as what was left of the train bounced off the leviathan's armored body, crashing into the streets below. It slowed to a crawl directly in front of the captain.
There was a moment of pause when the dust settled, as the captain expected more Chitauri foot soldiers to exit the train, but what greeted him made him lower his guard. Yuriko walked out with an alien plasma rifle in hand, getting into a stare-down with the Captain America who simply lowered his shield slowly with a nod.
One that Yuriko returned with relief as she noticed the barricade behind them.
"It's clear!" She called out. "Hurry! Get everyone out of there. Move! Move! Move! "
The group of children, students with teachers hastily guided by Yuriko, rushed out of the train with trembling steps and tear-filled eyes towards the makeshift barricade.
The captain quickly helped by picking up two with a few reassuring words and quickly guided them to shelter with the help of a few cops who ventured out to help them.
When they were safely taken in Yuriko fell in with the rest police force giving them her name and badge number while Captain America moved in to meet the closest authority figure to relay instructions that would help them defend the city better until the military was able to provide supper or the portal and Loki was dealt with.
More Chitauri foot soldiers descended on the streets from the city skyline. The moment of respite passed as the battle was back in full swing.
It didn't take much for Captain America to take charge of the police and armed civilians in the ensuing chaos.
-000000000-
-Else Where-
"RRAAAAAAAAAR," Hulk raged.
Thor's hammer struck him in the face again. He shook it off before retaliating with a punch of his own.
The Asgardian prince swiftly dodged, jumped back, and threw his hammer at the Hulk. The force behind the blow sent the hulk tumbling across the building, breaking into the concrete walls as if they were made of cardboard. Thor recalled his hummer rushing forward and attacking the beast with a barrage of strikes with his hammer and fists.
Hulk could do little to defend himself against Thor's onslaught.
The Asgardian had centuries of combat experience, and the added benefits of his innate strength and speed gave him an advantage over the green goliath. He fought with nothing held back—fueled by the Enchantress's influence over his mind—his actions were ruthless and without remorse, lacking the self-control he usually had.
Their fight all but destroyed the building they were in and carried them over to the next one, with the Hulk sporting more bruises and wounds than Thor. If anything, the Norse God of Thunder was winning the fight, but Hulk's insane healing factor and relentless tenacity kept him in the fight.
The two fighters paid no mind to the fleeing humans and couldn't care less about the destruction they left in their wake.
As Hulk's frustration and anger grew, so too did his strength increase by leaps and bounds. He growled as his sights slowly adjusted to Thor's speed, and with a grunt he caught Thor's fist. Hulk roared and punched the Thunder God, who responded in kind with his hammer.
Hulk's fist met Thor's enchanted weapon with a resounding shock wave, leaving static energy in the air as both combatants were forced apart.
They both circled each other, glaring intently at each other.
"ROOOARR!" Hulk raged at Thor, readying himself to keep going until the puny god was beaten to a pulp. Though he could not understand why an ally of Banner would attack, he did not care. This puny god would fall along with all the rest of them.
His rage intensified with each passing moment. His wounds and bruises were already rapidly healing by the second.
"Come. Beast of men!" Thor challenged. His hammer raised, pointing at the Hulk. The Thunder god's eyes glimmered with power as the green hues glowed brighter, covering his natural electric blue. "You will kneel before my beloved."
Hulk growled in seething anger. The concrete floor beneath him shattered as he launched himself at the thunder god with reckless abounded, his only thought being to punch the blond prince into oblivion.
That was his mistake, which the god of thunder capitalized on.
Swiftly, Thor dropped his hammer with a clang. He then redirected the Hulk's intended punch aside, grabbed his wrist, and skillfully used it as leverage to throw the behemoth over his shoulder, dropping the green giant on its back.
Before the Hulk could so much as move, Thor recalled his hammer into his hand and then proceeded to drop it on the Hulk's chest, utilizing the weapon enchantments to hold the beast down.
He then got behind the Hulk and proceeded to hold him down in a sleeper hold, strangling the raging Hulk as he struggled against the enchanted weapon holding him down.
"Enchantress! Now is the time!" Thor called out.
The Enchantress appeared beside the Hulk in a shimmer of green. The Hulk tried to reach out, but Thor held his hand by the wrist in a struggle for power.
The enchantress came close, caressing the Hulk's cheeks tenderly as the Hulk raged against Thor's hold.
"Well done, my beloved, now beast, calm yourself." The enchantress spoke softly with her melodious voice. She bent low before placing a soft kiss on the Hulk's forehead, before taking a few steps back.
Pulsating green energy seeped into the Hulk's skin from the Enchantress, and slowly the Hulk's struggling subsided into calming breaths. His growls faded into soft grunts.
His dark emerald green glowed brightly as a haunting green bled into his iris. The veins around his eye pulsed with magical green energy.
Thor let the Hulk go and recalled his hammer, moving to Amora's side to protect her as the spell took root within the Hulk's being.
Hulk groggily got to his feet, frequently shaking his head as if to wake himself. His attempts to fight the influencing bindings of the Enchantress were ineffective.
For a moment, the Hulk heard Banner's cries within his mind, but that also faded. The strange woman's oddly soothing voice rang in his ears, followed by a more familiar one he could not recall as his mind drifted into a dream-like haze.
"It is done."
"Wow! Big guy? Is that you? Buddy! I thought that was you crashing in here, fancy meeting you… here…OK… Who are you guys supposed to be?"
-Chapter End-
Below is a rehash of Yuri's ability for those who may have forgotten.
Yuriko Watanabe
Sin of Lust
Branch: Excess (Enough is never enough)
Code Name: Wraith
Branch Power: Blood Whip/Blade (Speed Type)
She can make blood whips from her blood which she could harden the whips edges into bladed forms and propel them at supersonic speed allowing her to cut most objects with relative ease. She can also freely manipulate her blood and its applications as she chooses.
Enhanced physique and regeneration are standard for all sin shared holders however, they/do not need to consume blood like Peter.
Special ability granted by her sin shard:
Excess: Enough is never enough
-Everything about her is amplified—her strength, speed, emotions, intellect. The more she strives for it, the more she pushes past her limits, and the more they are amplified with no upper limit to her growth. Etc...
Mental/Emotional Side-Effect
She has a religious maniac-like obsession with the holder of the original sin Shard, Peter Parker, due to her suffering from transference syndrome and its combination with the branches of sin's innate nature of ensuring complete loyalty to the original sin. The feeling of gratefulness for being saved from the brink of death by Peter and the brunch of sins nature of loyally and her own unique ability that amplified her emotions created a feedback loop in which her feeling of gratitude and loyalty are further amplified by her ability into an odd combination lust, loyalty, duty, and obsession.