"How do you want to handle this, Marcus?"
The battle was rapidly tilting in favor of the prison guards, largely due to the overwhelming power of the Sandman. If Marcus didn't turn things around soon, Hydra's prison raid would devolve into a catastrophic failure — a suicide mission with no survivors.
The Sandman's colossal form continued to swell, absorbing more and more sand into his body. The wound Killian had inflicted earlier with his death ray sealed itself in seconds, replaced by fresh layers of shifting grit. The towering sand giant was evolving by the minute — stronger, denser, harder to kill.
He raised one massive, mountain-sized hand and slammed it down like a god swatting flies. A single blow was enough to turn several Hydra soldiers into nothing more than smears of blood and pulp. The sand swallowed their remains greedily, pulling them into the giant's body until not a trace remained.
"I can't handle this alone," Marcus muttered, his eyes narrowing. "Killian, I'll need your help — but you'll also need some mobility…"
His gaze lifted toward the sky — to the Green Goblin, darting through the air on his hoverboard like a vulture. A thin, predatory smile formed on Marcus's lips.
"That toy of his should do nicely."
At that moment, the Goblin was locked in an intense duel — not with Marcus, but with Thunder, Marcus's bioelectric lieutenant. She sprinted vertically along the prison's metal walls, electricity crackling beneath her boots. Each stride magnetized her steps, allowing her to run up sheer surfaces like a spider.
"Copy that. I'll take care of the Goblin."
Twin combat daggers sparked with lightning as Thunder lunged forward, slashing at the Goblin's face. He twisted his head aside, the blades narrowly missing his cheek. Sparks flew as Thunder launched herself off the wall in a graceful arc, her crossed blades flashing in an "X" aimed directly at his throat.
The Goblin swung his plasma-edged sword up to block, the two clashing midair in a shower of blinding light. For a brief moment, they struggled — steel against steel, muscle against voltage.
Then Thunder did something unexpected.
She released her grip.
The Goblin's eyes widened as her magnetized daggers clung tightly to his sword, locking them together. Thunder used the brief moment of confusion to plant one boot on his glider, kicking off hard. As she flipped backward, two more daggers — the ones she had thrown earlier — circled back, guided by her bioelectric control.
They stabbed clean into the Goblin's back.
Electricity surged through his body, a blinding yellow light dancing across his armor as he convulsed violently.
On the ground below, Doctor Octopus had found his target — Marcus.
He lunged forward, his four metal tentacles lashing through the air with mechanical precision. Two slammed into the walls for stability while the other two attacked, their claws snapping with lethal speed.
The infamous scientist-turned-monster had once been a brilliant nuclear physicist, but the lab accident that fused his mechanical arms to his spine had twisted both his body and his mind. Each tentacle could lift over eight tons — and they moved with the instinctive speed of living creatures, responding to every thought he had.
"Out of my way," Marcus growled.
He met the incoming tentacle head-on, swinging his bloodflame-wreathed adamantium katana. The blade cleaved through the metal limb effortlessly — molten steel spraying from the wound as the crimson fire devoured the severed circuitry.
Doctor Octopus screamed in agony. The tentacles were wired directly into his nervous system — he could feel every cut, every burn. The pain drove him berserk, the remaining arms flailing wildly, smashing walls and crushing unfortunate guards who strayed too close. The sheer force of the blows turned men into bloody smears against the steel walls.
Marcus watched the mechanical rampage for a moment — then smiled coldly.
"Thunder."
That single word was all she needed.
In an instant, Thunder leapt from her position and landed lightly atop Doctor Octopus's shoulders. She pressed her fingers to his temple, arcs of electricity dancing between her fingertips.
A surge of lightning erupted from her hand. The current shot straight through his nervous system, flooding his brain and shutting down his motor functions. His body convulsed once, then went limp, collapsing to the floor.
But Marcus wasn't finished — and neither was she.
Even though Doctor Octopus's body was unconscious, the tentacles continued to move — twitching, coiling, searching for new commands.
Perfect.
Thunder grinned as realization dawned. The tentacles, after all, were controlled by neural bioelectric signals. And her power was bioelectric control.
With guidance from Tony through the zombie link, she adjusted her current — hacking into the feedback loop that linked the tentacles to their master's brain. The arms shuddered, froze, and then realigned under her command.
In seconds, she had hijacked Doctor Octopus's greatest invention.
Now they were hers.
"Let's see how you like this," Thunder murmured.
The tentacles suddenly whipped forward — not at Marcus, but at the still-staggering Green Goblin.
Before the Goblin could even comprehend what was happening, the metallic limbs shot out, clamping around his chest and limbs. The claws slammed him to the ground with bone-crushing force, nearly snapping his spine. He tried to scream, but the air was driven from his lungs.
The mechanical arms pinned him down effortlessly, locking tight around his body. Even the Goblin's enhanced strength couldn't break free.
Above, his glider — now spinning out of control — was intercepted midair by Killian. The scientist caught it with one hand, landing shakily atop the device.
"Not bad," Killian muttered, wobbling as he tried to find balance. "A little unstable, but it'll do." He fiddled with the controls, adjusting his footing until the hoverboard steadied. "Alright, Marcus — what's the plan?"
Marcus's crimson eyes glowed, reflecting the flickering flames around them.
"The plan," he said, raising his blade and looking toward the towering sand giant, "is simple."
He smirked.
"Let's bring that monster down."
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T/N:
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