The garage trembled as something massive landed above them. Dust sifted down from the ceiling in thin streams. A low, metallic hiss echoed through the concrete like a predator's growl.
Brian's smile didn't flicker. He tilted his head, hands tucked into his jacket pockets. "Let me guess. We've got company?"
Mercy Voss—her codename "Angel," though Brian still preferred calling her "Scarlet Panther" in his head—rolled her eyes. She was kneeling at the terminal she'd been hacking into, her crimson hair gleaming under the dim fluorescent light. "More like a walking tank. You heard that thud? That's no Stark drone."
The System pulsed golden in Brian's vision.
> [Alert: Hunter Elite Detected]
[Power Rating: ???]
[Recommendation: Engage with Extreme Caution]
He grinned. "Extreme caution isn't really my thing Time to Flex."
Aria's fingers froze mid-code. "You're not seriously planning to fight and Flex right at it—"
The roof above them cracked. Steel beams groaned. A jagged claw punched through the concrete, curling like a hook. Sparks rained down as the claw carved a hole wide enough for a man to drop through. Then it did.
The Hunter Elite wasn't just tall like the first one; it was colossal enormous four meters of jagged obsidian armor laced with shifting void energy. Its wings were wider than the garage itself, folded tight as it hunched down. Its helm was a blank oval of swirling darkness.
It opened its mouth—if it had one—and a voice like static and knives hissed: "Return. The. System."
Aria whispered a curse. "That's… definitely not a fuck ..Ng drone."
Brian stepped forward, shadows licking at his boots. "Sorry, big guy. This System's mine foreve."
The Hunter's blade of condensed shadow elongated into a halberd. Energy crackled at its edges.
The System chimed again.
> [New Bond Event: "Stand Together"]
[Fusion Skill Path Unlocked]
[Temporary Skill Available: Flex Bond Ascension Mode]
Brian blinked. "Fusion Mode?"
Aria looked at him like he'd grown another head. "Fusion what now?"
He smirked. "Wanna try something crazy?"
She stared at the towering Hunter. "Crazy is better than dead."
Brian extended his hand. "Trust me?"
Aria hesitated only a heartbeat before slapping her palm into his. The instant their skin touched, the System roared like a waking beast.
> [Flex Bond Ascension Mode Activated]
[Attributes Doubled: Strength, Speed, Reflex]
[New Skill: Twin Strike – Shadow + Light]
Shadows poured off Brian's body like a living storm. Aria's crimson aura bled into it, streaks of light swirling through the darkness. Their outlines blurred, their eyes glowing twin gold and red.
Aria gasped, looking down at her hands now sheathed in clawed gauntlets of shadow-light. "What the hell…"
Brian flexed his fingers, now wreathed in spiraling energy. "Flex upgrade unlocked."
The Hunter Elite lunged.
Brian moved first. He didn't just Shadow Step—he vanished and reappeared mid-air, dragging Aria's aura with him. Together they struck like a comet, her light-daggers crossing his shadow-blades in an X-shaped slash.
The Hunter staggered, armor cracking in jagged seams of black fire. It roared, wings exploding outward, buffeting them back with a shockwave that shattered nearby cars.
Brian hit the hood of a sedan, bounced, and landed in a crouch. He laughed breathlessly. "Okay. That's a big boy."
Aria landed beside him, her hair now streaked with flickers of shadow. "We're glowing. Why are we glowing?"
"Because we're awesome," Brian said. "Stay sharp."
The Hunter reared back and hurled its halberd. Brian yanked Aria into a Shadow Step just before the weapon impaled the floor, leaving a crater of collapsing concrete.
They reappeared behind it. Brian spun into a kick, shadows coiling into a whip that snapped across the Hunter's back. Aria leapt high, daggers striking the seams of its wings. Sparks of void energy sprayed.
The System chimed.
> [Combo Strike Achieved – Damage Multiplier x3]
The Hunter roared louder, its body already reknitting itself. Its helm shifted, forming a single glowing eye. It spoke again, voice colder: "You cannot escape across worlds."
Aria's breath hitched. "Across… worlds?"
Brian smirked. "Oh, buddy, you haven't seen my itinerary yet."
The Hunter slammed its wings together, releasing a concussive blast of void energy. The shockwave hit like a freight train, launching Brian and Aria across the garage. They crashed into a wall, leaving cracks spiderwebbing across the concrete.
Aria groaned. "Your plans suck."
Brian wiped blood from his lip, still grinning. "But they're fun."
The System pinged:
> [Hunter Elite Power Rising – 87%]
[Warning: Fusion Mode Time Remaining: 2:15]
Brian's grin faltered a fraction. "Two minutes, huh? Alright."
Aria pushed herself to her feet, eyes glowing red. "Got any other tricks?"
"Yeah," Brian said. "We run."
Aria blinked. "What?"
He pointed at a hidden door half-collapsed under debris. "Underground tunnel. My System marked it. We get out, regroup, flex harder next time."
She hesitated. "And leave that thing?"
Brian smirked. "It's either that or we become kebabs for real."
She grimaced. "Fine."
The Hunter lunged again, halberd raised. Brian grabbed Aria's wrist and Shadow Stepped, ripping both of them through the concrete like ink smeared across a page. They reappeared at the hidden door, smashing it open with a kick. Behind them the Hunter howled, wings scraping the ceiling as it turned.
Brian and Aria bolted down the narrow tunnel, shadows and light flickering off the damp walls. Their footsteps echoed like gunfire.
The System flickered:
> [Hunter Elite Marking Target Aura]
[Escape Chance: 42%]
Aria panted. "It's following us, isn't it?"
Brian glanced back at the darkness boiling at the tunnel's mouth. "Yeah Fu..k."
They reached an underground garage filled with sleek black vehicles—ECLIPSE ANGELS transport units. Aria's eyes widened. "These are restricted."
Brian grinned. "Good thing I'm unrestricted."
He jumped into the driver's seat of a low-slung black hovercar. "Get in."
Aria vaulted into the passenger seat just as the tunnel behind them exploded. The Hunter Elite burst through, wings scraping the ceiling, halberd spinning.
Brian slammed the ignition. The hovercar roared to life, lifting off the ground. He punched it. They shot forward as the Hunter's halberd embedded in the floor where they'd been.
The hovercar blasted out of a hidden ramp, bursting into the New York night. Neon lights streaked past as Brian wove between traffic, repulsor engines whining. Aria clung to the door handle. "You even have a license?"
Brian grinned. "Multiverse Flex King. We don't need licenses because we are too handsome I mean me."
The Hunter Elite burst from the ramp behind them, wings propelling it into the air like a nightmare angel. Cars swerved, horns blaring. Civilians screamed, phones up.
Brian's System chimed.
> [New Mission: Outrun the Hunter Elite – Reward Unknown]
He smirked. "Challenge accepted."
He banked hard down Fifth Avenue, weaving between taxis. The Hunter soared above, shadow bolts raining down like comets. Brian swerved left, one bolt annihilating a billboard in a rain of sparks.
Aria's eyes flicked to him. "This is insane you're insane everyone insane."
Brian laughed. "Insane is my brand Love."
She almost smiled. "You're impossible."
"Compliment accepted."
The System ticked down.
> [Fusion Mode Time Remaining: 0:48]
Brian's grin turned feral. "Alright, one last trick."
He jerked the hovercar into an alley, braking hard. "Hold on."
Aria gripped the dash. "Hold on to what—"
Brian slammed the emergency release. Panels on the car's sides unfolded, revealing twin repulsor launchers—StarkTech upgrades he'd "borrowed" during his brief Marvel escapade.
He gunned it forward, then yanked the trigger. The launchers fired a barrage of shadow-infused repulsor pulses straight up.
The Hunter dove into the alley just as the pulses erupted. The explosion rocked the street, hurling the Hunter back into a billboard with a crash of steel and glass.
Brian floored it, shooting out of the alley and back into open streets. The Hunter didn't reappear.
Aria stared at him. "Did we… lose it?"
The System chimed softly.
> [Hunter Elite Status: Tracking Only]
[Warning: Target Aura Marked – Pursuit Across Universes Likely]
Brian's grin returned. "Nope. But we bought time."
Aria exhaled, leaning back. "You're out of your mind."
He smirked. "And yet, you're still here."
She glanced at him, eyes unreadable. "For now."
Brian's System flickered one more message.
> [New Opportunity: World Shift Available]
[Option: Return to Charlie's Angels Universe – Safehouse Prepared]
Brian chuckled. "Looks like my vacation in Marvel's almost over."
Aria arched a brow. "Vacation?"
"Yeah," he said. "Wait until you see my home base."
She looked out the window at the streaking neon. "If we survive."
He grinned, flexing his fingers on the wheel. "We always do."
The Hunter's roar echoed faintly behind them, lost in the city noise.
[TO BE CONTINUED…]