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A violent shockwave tore through the battlefield. The ground heaved beneath their feet. Broken cars flipped, shattering glass sprayed across the street, and loose debris spun into the air like deadly shrapnel. Heroes gritted their teeth, bracing against the force, boots scraping and sliding on cracked concrete.
Inferno threw both arms up, flames sputtering violently under the pressure. The heat from his own body collided with the violent energy around him, singeing his sleeves.
Inferno: "OH SHIT—!!"
He slid backward several meters, boots gouging the asphalt, leaving streaks of black smoke behind.
Inferno: "Fuck! Do we really gotta deal with THIS thing!?"
Frostbite pressed herself behind a half-melted pillar, the air around her hair whipping violently. Her palms clenched at her knees as shards of concrete flew past her face.
Frostbite: "Yeah, no kidding. Mentis is facing that thing alone! Come on, move your ass! We need to clear a path for him!"
A bone-deep roar tore through the city, vibrating windows and sending loose debris rattling. People nearby screamed and ducked instinctively.
Megalodon rose from the ruins, armor scraping as smoke streamed from the joints. His six eyes blazed like molten suns. He exhaled a puff of ash and heat that made the heroes stagger backward, coughing.
Megalodon: "Enough games… Come face me, Mentis was it?"
His voice hit the ground like a falling boulder, scattering rubble from the nearest collapsed building.
Megalodon looked down at the heroes. "You think you can stand a chance against me, mortals?"
Before anyone could react, he vanished in a blink and reappeared with a fist aiming straight for Black Mentis' skull. The air around him warped from the speed, pushing Inferno off balance as sparks flew from a nearby overturned metal sign.
Black Mentis inhaled sharply, shoulders tensing.
Black Mentis: "G—! Fuck, he's fast!"
He twisted sideways at the last instant. The punch grazed his cheek, tearing a shallow line across the edge of his mask. Mentis' jaw clenched. Sweat ran down the side of his face, eyes narrowing as he pivoted, fists ready.
The follow-up strike came instantly. Mentis dropped under it, fist igniting with violet energy, slamming straight into Megalodon's chest. A violent detonation ripped through the street. Asphalt cracked under the force. A nearby car's tires blew out as the vehicle rolled into a fire hydrant. Water sprayed in a chaotic arc, turning the rubble slick and dangerous.
Thunderstrike stomped down hard, the warhammer cracking the pavement under his feet. He swung it upward, hitting a half-flipped SUV. It exploded in a shower of twisted metal, glass, and flames.
Thunderstrike: "GOD DAYMN! Shit's gettin' serious out here, people!"
Megalodon staggered, armor denting inward, smoke hissing from the impacts. His massive frame shifted, balancing across chunks of broken street. His eyes pulsed, scanning Mentis with calculated intensity.
Megalodon: "That's… Strange. This… isn't the one I'm looking for…"
Black Mentis' teeth ground together, a tight line across his face. His fist flexed, violet energy flickering along his knuckles.
Black Mentis: "You weren't expecting that, big guy?"
The ground groaned under the tension between them. Broken concrete splintered, chunks bouncing into nearby trenches. Civilians froze mid-step, eyes wide with terror. Heroes paused as the air thickened, something primal and wrong settling over the battlefield.
Then, without warning, both Mentis and Megalodon vanished.
Two streaks of color tore through the sky, one violet-blue, one deep crimson. They collided midair, fists smashing together with a thunderous clap that rolled through the clouds. The sound shattered nearby windows, rattled street signs, and pushed heroes off balance. A shockwave tore through the ruined streets, sending smoke and dust into swirling columns.
Megalodon: "Are you here to buy your master time, puppet?"
Black Mentis' eyebrow twitched sharply, jaw tightening.
Black Mentis: "What the hell are you babbling abo…"
A sharp blow interrupted him. Megalodon's elbow smashed into his side, sending him skidding back across a crushed bus. Wood splintered and metal groaned under the weight of Mentis' impact.
Megalodon: "Shut your ass up! Pathetic worm."
Black Mentis shot forward in a blur, knee raised. Megalodon mirrored the motion instantly. Knees collided with a massive CRUNCH. The air around them exploded outward in a circular blast, hurling chunks of asphalt, shards of glass, and several smaller demons into the air. Screams tore through the streets as civilians scrambled to cover. Flames ignited where cars overturned, smoke rising in thick black columns.
Piles of rubble collapsed under the shockwave. Concrete cracked into jagged pieces. Flames roared upward from gas leaks. There was nowhere for anyone to hide.
Black Mentis' eyes stayed locked on Megalodon, teeth gritted, every muscle ready. He breathed sharply, scanning for the smallest opening, the tiniest flaw, as the red-hot heat from the battle pressed against his armor and body.
Electro, Mr. Torch, and Rock-man sprinted straight into the chaos as a demon horde surged toward them, claws scraping concrete, jaws snapping as they ran.
Electro skidded to a stop and flung both arms outward. Lightning erupted from his body in jagged, violent arcs, snapping through the air and slamming into the charging demons.
Electro: "MOVE, GET OUT OF MY DAMN WAY!!"
He leaned forward, boots grinding against the street as he discharged again. Bolts ripped through demon torsos mid-run. Bodies split open violently, chests bursting, limbs jerking as electricity cooked them from the inside. A few demons convulsed before collapsing in smoking heaps, the smell of burned flesh thick in the air.
Mr. Torch vaulted over shattered rubble, purple flames roaring from his hands. Heat rippled outward as he landed, knees bending hard on impact.
Mr. Torch: "BURN, YOU FREAKS!!"
He swept his arms in a wide arc. Fire swallowed an entire cluster of demons. Skin blistered and slid off bone. Screams cut short as bodies blackened, collapsing into twitching, charred remains. Flames crawled up nearby wreckage, igniting leaking fuel and shattered debris.
Rock-man slammed his fists together. Stone ground loudly as his forearms thickened, cracks forming across his skin.
Rock-man: "Alright… my turn. These weird-ass freaks picked the WRONG day to mess with Earth!"
He stomped forward and drove both fists into the ground. The street buckled violently. Jagged boulders erupted upward like artillery, smashing through demon bodies. Limbs snapped off. Ribcages caved in. One demon was crushed so hard its torso burst open, blood and organs splattering across the pavement.
A massive demon charged through the smoke. Its muscles bulged unnaturally, jaw split into three snapping maws. It caught a falling boulder with one arm, stone cracking under its grip, and hurled it back with brutal force.
The heroes barely dove aside as the boulder smashed into a building, collapsing part of the structure in a thunderous crash.
Rock-man spun sharply, eyes widening as he saw the demon closing in behind them.
Rock-man: "ELECTRO BEHIND—!"
Electro turned, lightning still crackling around his hands.
Too late.
The demon's massive claws clamped down around Electro's head. There was a sickening CRACK. Bones collapsed instantly. Blood exploded outward in a thick spray, splattering across broken concrete and Rock-man's armor. Brain matter slid down the demon's palm as Electro's body went limp.
His headless corpse hit the ground with a wet thud, lightning flickering out as it died with him.
Mr. Torch froze for half a second, eyes wide.
Mr. Torch: "FUCK!!"
The demon lunged. Its fist slammed into Mr. Torch's chest. The impact folded him in half and launched him through a collapsed building. He smashed through one wall, then another, then a third before hitting the ground hard and going completely still.
Blood smeared the rubble in a long, dark streak.
Rock-man roared and charged, teeth bared, stone spiraling violently around his fists like grinding drills.
Rock-man: "DIE YOU MOTHER… FUCKER!!"
He planted his feet and fired rotating stone bullets straight into the demon's chest. Flesh shredded apart. Ribs splintered outward. The demon staggered, gargled, then collapsed face-first with a heavy thud that shook the street.
Rock-man dropped to his knees beside the bodies, chest heaving. His hands trembled as he hovered over them, dust and blood caking his arms.
Rock-man, voice breaking: "Rest… in peace… you crazy bastards… I avenged you…"
On the other side of the battlefield, Mender knelt beside a gravely injured hero. Blood soaked through his sleeves and pooled beneath his knees. His hands glowed faintly as he pressed them against shredded flesh.
Mender: "H-Hold still… fuck… come on— come ON! Stay with me!"
His breathing stuttered. Sweat dripped from his chin as his arms shook from exhaustion.
A civilian's scream pierced through the chaos.
A boy lay pinned beneath a collapsed beam, crying and clawing at the rubble.
Rock-man forced himself up and sprinted toward them, rage still burning in his eyes.
Rock-man: "Mender! We need you up front!"
Mender didn't look up.
Mender: "Buy me some goddam time then! I'm busy, dude!"
Photon slammed into a demon, shield crashing into its face with a crunch. He followed through immediately, blade hacking through thick bone and splitting the creature apart.
Photon: "We NEED a route out! Civilians are getting slaughtered out here!"
He smashed another demon with his shield, staggered it back, then pivoted and cut clean through its torso. The upper half slid off and collapsed, guts spilling onto the road.
Gravity staggered forward, blood streaming down her forehead and into her eyes. She wiped it away with the back of her hand and threw both arms wide.
The air warped violently.
Demons were crushed into the ground, bodies flattening, bones snapping under invisible pressure. Some burst outright, blood spraying across the cracked street.
Gravity: "E-Echo, Spectra get civilians OUT… NOW!"
Echo split instantly into five glowing copies. They blinked in and out of existence, grabbing survivors by the arms, shoulders, clothing. Each clone vanished with civilians in bursts of light, reappearing far from the battlefield.
Spectra swooped overhead, boots barely touching rubble as she passed. One hand pressed against her temple.
Her eyes ignited.
Twin beams of focused light swept across the street. Demons were cut clean in half. Torsos slid away from hips. Arms spun through the air. Organs spilled and slapped wetly against the pavement as bodies collapsed.
Spectra: "Path's CLEAR! MOVE!"
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