After what felt like an eternity, the elevator reached its summit as he looked up, finding it leading to an open hole in the surface. As the lids that covered where the lift rose from opened, he could make out a distinct sound, continuous, blaring noises:
'Gunfire?' He realized, listening in.
Between what sounded like dozens of weapons unloading thousands of rounds, there was a haunting laughter that boomed from the surface. It brought his heart rate to intensity as he resided himself for what waited at the top.
As it brought him up, he found himself at the unassuming landscape the facility was buried under: a valley of luscious grass, overlooked by a forest of trees. Yet, that majestic scenery was torn away by what occupied the land.
From the platform amidst the soil, he could see dozens of military operatives in their sleek, black armor opening fire on one figure in the middle of it all.
"Ha-ha-ha! Is that all you can do?! I can't even feel it!"
The boisterous provocations came from a man of towering height and a burly build, with golden skin which the hail of bullets simply bounced off of like wads of paper off glass. In the hand of the inhuman figure that laughed with joy, a massive hammer was swung towards a gathering of trees.
"--Step out and face me!" The golden-skinned man of silver dreadlocks commanded.
The swing of the hammer spurred forth a shock wave that tore the soil in its path, uprooting the slumbering trees before blasting a half dozen operatives into the air. Those caught in the sweeping wave had their bones twisted and snapped, guided to a swift death.
Seven lifted his arms as the aftershock swept through the trees, left agasp at the display of power, 'That's one, isn't it–? This is my first time seeing one in person,' he thought.
[Fulminare registered.]
[Classification: High Superhuman, Stage Three | Threat Level: Disaster Magnitude 7.0]
Seeing it in person, watching as the being that somewhat resembled a human, only of terrible might and golden skin, laughing as bullets bounced off his body, was eye opening.
Through all of the strengthening his body had undergone, he questioned if any of it matters against the force he witnessed sweep through the valley.
As he stood there in shock as the laughing Fulminare swung his hammer to the right, producing another shock wave that tore through trees and soldiers alike, the earpiece buzzed in:
"Seven, do you read me? Are you listening? Seven, come in–!" The voice of Dr. Goldstein played in his ear.
It took him a moment to come to, pressing the communication device in his ear as he finally breathed out again, "Yeah…I can hear you. This thing–Doc, I don't know if I can–"
"Seven, if you don't think you can handle it, then you can retreat. You're the only hope humanity has right now, we can't lose you. I'll trust your judgment–just let me know," Dr. Goldstein communicated.
Even if he was told that, it simply felt wrong to flee. There was a part of him, something etched into his mind that told him this is what his purpose was. As he stood there, the sights of the golden-skinned terror locked onto him.
"You there! Just going to hide behind your kin while they get slaughtered?!" The Fulminare shouted with a blazing smile, disregarding the bullets that reflected off his skin.
Like a blur, the massive figure of golden skin moved around the isolated forest, catching the operatives who shot at him. It was a brutal display for the man, unadjusted to the horrors of fighting a Fulminate; the barbarian crushed the bodies of soldiers with merely the wind of his swings, and splattering them into a red paste with direct contact.
The horrific display continued before Seven witnessed the figure now approaching him, clutching the lifeless bodies of the fallen agents in his hands before discarding them like trash.
'I've read about it, seen it on the internet, but seeing it firsthand…This is what the Fulminare are–living, breathing calamities that live for nothing else but battle,' Seven thought.
There was no avoiding it now, Seven could feel the subtle vibrations through the ground with every stomp taken by the overwhelming entity. A fight was coming; a battle of life-and-death.
Ba-dump. Ba-dump. Ba-dump.
Inside of his chest, his heart wildly thumped as sweat left his pores, finding the approaching presence to be suffocating as he struggled to even lift the weapon in his hand.
The doctor's voice buzzed into his ear as he stood there like a statue, "Seven–? The enemy is approaching–! Seven, do you read me?!"
Amidst his own fear, the monotone voice of the system met his ears before a warm sensation ran through his body. It felt like energy humming through each of his veins, filling with vigor as though his muscles were waking up.
[Engaging in combat with [Grand Superhuman] class enemy.]
[...Accelerated heart rate recognized. Anxiety levels rising…]
[Increasing serotonin levels.]
[All physical capabilities at one-hundred percent.]
He found the anxiety washed away, blinking once as he found the Fulminare of silver dreadlocks a dozen meters away, blinking again before–the frightening entity was right in front of him.
"Don't doze off in front of your enemy!" The Fulminare warrior shouted with an ear-to-ear smile, bringing his hammer up.
It was only through his enhanced reflexes did he even register the incredible speed possessed by the Fulminare in that moment, bringing him to naturally jump back to place distance between them.
'This guy is seven foot, at least–I didn't expect him to be that fast–I have to stay focused, or I'll die,' Seven thought, landing on his feet amidst the battle-torn, tucked-away forest.
Just as his feet touched the leaf-ridden soil, he witnessed the superhuman being swing the hammer even from a few meters away. In that split-second, he could see the air contorting around that blunt instrument of destruction, bringing his arms in front of him like a makeshift shield.
[Lethal attack recognized. Hardening muscles to maximum capacity.]
Across his body, every fiber seemed to tighten and stiffen like a steel-clad statue, preparing for the unavoidable force. As the hammer was swept up by the smiling destroyer, all he could see was a storm of dirt tore up in front of him before the force pushed against him.
"Ngh!--"
It lifted him off his feet, ringing through the marrow of his bones as every millimeter of his body felt as though it was cracking away from the hammer's aftershock. He felt his back slam against a tree, knocking the air out of his lungs along with blood from his nose and ears.
'Hurts–can't breathe…Lungs…burning,' Seven thought, gasping out as he struggled to pick himself up.
[Blunt trauma recognized.]
[Lungs…Kidney…Stomach…Spinal integrity, damaged.]
As the system diagnosed the problems he didn't need any help recognizing, he coughed out droplets of blood, struggling so much as to even move while hearing the stomps of the Fulminare.
To his surprise, even though all he did was nearly get blown to bits in a single strike, a prompt appeared in his view of improvement:
[EXP: +120]
[Level 5 reached.] [5/80]
[Adjusting genetic structure.]
[Breaking down muscle fibers. Enhancing tendons and ligaments in response to physical limitations. Increasing density of bones, prioritizing defensive adaptations.]
[Current Status: Low-Degree Superhuman | Third Stage]
The bones in his body cracked and reconfigured as he gasped out in pain, feeling his own spine slithering in his back like a snake before setting itself in place. It was an extraordinary amount of pain, feeling the very foundation of his body adjust itself in the moment, though he gritted his teeth through it.
"//The Fulminare is approaching, Seven–! Move, right now!" Dr. Goldstein's voice played through his earpiece.
There was no warning needed as he could feel the weight of the golden-skinned being's powerful steps just a few meters shy of himself. He kicked his feet up, using the momentum to bring himself to his feet swiftly.
As expected in that split-second, there was a look of shock on the Fulminare warrior's face, as if not expecting there to be a chance the "mere" human could've survived the attack.
Seven pointed Mjolnir at the towering figure, practically pressing the barrel against the being's bare, golden chest before pulling the trigger. It felt more like having to squeeze down a thousand pound grip before it clicked–
THWOOM
He found himself sliding back several meters as the kick slammed against his shoulder, witnessing the prototype weapon release projectiles that exploded with cerulean flames.
"Gruhh!--" The Fulminare fighter let out a pained yell.
The impact shook the surrounding trees of the government-secured forest, brushing the leaves with the experimental blast.
'That doc wasn't kidding–this thing packs a punch!' Seven realized, feeling his arm ache, though not focusing on it as he watched the aftershock of the weapon's trigger pull.
As the flames dispersed, the silhouette of the bulky-framed figure returned to his sight, still remaining on his feet despite taking the blast point-blank.
"That really stung, y'know!? That's the first time something in this world has hurt me! Ha-ha!" The Fulminare warrior laughed, casting the smoke away with a stomp of his foot.
It was a frightening sight, seeing small holes placed through the golden skin of the Fulminare, leaking blood, though nothing enough to stop the brute.
'The Mjolnir wasn't enough—? How's he still standing after that?!' Seven wondered in shock.