Steel & Stark vs. The Light. The transport ship skimmed low over a scarred horizon. Cities lay in ruin, their towers split in half, smoke bleeding into the clouds. Roads were clogged with overturned cars, bones, and the charred husks of military convoys. S
Steel leaned forward in his seat, jaw tight.
Steel, "All this… from one demon?"
Stark scanned the wreckage, voice low and grim. Stark, "Already radioed Ian. This is way bigger than we thought."
They touched down near a destroyed base. Burned-out walkers still smoked, bodies lay covered in tattered flags. Among the silence, a lone soldier moved through the carnage, dragging corpses into a line. Steel and Stark approached.
Steel, "Soldier—what happened here?"
Soldier, broken, "He tore us apart before we could even get a signal out. Fast. Brutal."
Stark, "And the heroes stationed here? What about them?"
Soldier, shaking his head, "All dead. They went in one by one. He crushed them. Effortlessly."
Steel cursed under his breath.
Steel, "Ian really thinks just the two of us can stop this thing…"
Soldier, "If you're smart, you'll bring the Galactic Army. One demon shouldn't—"
Stark cut him off, his voice steel. Stark, "Orders are orders. Ian wants it fast. We'll handle it."
They drove to the outskirts, stopping near a shattered airport. The once-bustling terminal was reduced to rubble, glass crunched under their boots as they entered the abandoned concourse. Silence stretched… until a deep roar rattled the air.
From the shadows of the control tower, it emerged. Twenty feet tall, scales of green and brown, jagged teeth like shards of obsidian. Its arms bulged—each the width of Steel's torso, ending in claws that could rip tanks apart.
Stark froze, whispering: Stark, "…I thought this was just your average juggernaut."
The demon bellowed and charged. The Battle. The ground shook as it slammed into them. Steel braced, catching its first punch with both arms—his muscles straining, bones screaming—before being blasted backward by a savage right hook that sent him crashing through debris.
Stark dove low, trying to take out its legs, but the creature scooped him up with terrifying speed, power-slamming him into the runway hard enough to crack the tarmac into a crater. Steel roared, flying back in, his fist connecting with the demon's face, staggering it.
Enraged, the monster grabbed a whole passenger plane and hurled it. Steel's eyes widened. He braced—until Stark launched off the ground, spinning in midair, and kicked the plane aside, the wreck skidding down the runway in flames. Steel charged again, aiming for its core, but the demon's claws closed around his arm.
The crunch echoed sickeningly as it bent Steel's forearm in the wrong direction. He collapsed, gasping in pain. The demon raised a foot to stomp— But Stark blurred in, his fist smashing the beast off its feet. The demon rolled, snarling, then lunged again. It snatched Stark, massive hands crushing his skull as it slammed his head repeatedly into the ground.
Stark's jaw cracked audibly, blood spilling between his teeth as he gagged, barely conscious. Steel staggered to his feet, fury burning through the pain.
Steel, snarling, "We need to lock in. Think!" He summoned his energy, a glowing sphere the size of a neighborhood forming in his palms. With a roar, he slammed it into the demon's chest. The explosion shook the airport, tearing through the control tower and scattering flaming wreckage across the tarmac.
For a moment, silence. Then, the demon stood, burned, bloodied, but still alive. Cuts streaked across its scaled hide, but its glare was sharper than ever. Steel charged again, tackling it into the wreckage.
Stark staggered to his feet, coughing blood, clutching his cracked ribs. He leapt, wrapping an arm around the demon's neck, choking with all his remaining strength. The beast roared, grabbed Steel, and hurled him like a rag doll.
With its other arm, it seized Stark's throat, squeezing until his neck bones creaked under the pressure. Stark's eyes rolled as his jaw cracked further—seconds from death—until Steel roared back into the fray, grabbing the monster's massive arm and tearing it away from Stark with every ounce of strength he had left.
The demon dropped Stark, who collapsed, coughing and bloody, barely able to move. The monster turned its attention fully to Steel, lifting him by the neck. Then it began smashing his head into the ground—again, and again, and again… The battlefield was silent, save for the crackle of burning metal.
Steel lay on the ground, his chest heaving, blood soaking the dirt beneath him. His scream still echoed in Stark's ears as he watched his friend's left arm torn clean off and tossed aside like nothing. The demon's massive shadow loomed for a moment longer.
Its glowing eyes scanned them, almost amused. Then, with a guttural growl, it turned and walked off into the smoke, leaving destruction in its wake. Stark coughed blood, dragging himself across the cracked tarmac toward Steel.
Stark, raspy, "Stay with me… don't you die on me." Steel's breath was ragged, but he grinned through the pain, his teeth red with blood.
Steel, weak laugh, "Guess… strength alone wasn't enough this time." Stark's hands trembled as he tried to stop the bleeding.
Stark, "Save the speeches for later. Ian's gonna kill me if you bleed out before we get back."
He called for evac through his comms, voice shaking. Minutes later, Galactic Empire medics stormed the ruined airport, carrying Steel onto a stretcher as Stark collapsed to his knees. As the ship lifted them from the ruined city, Stark stared out the window at the smoke-filled horizon.
Stark, to himself, "We weren't enough… not even close."