[AUTHOR NOTE: Hey guys, if you are not on my discord server and has been not updated with the news about my patreon. My patreon is dead. They rejected my appeal. I searched for other platforms that are friendly towards my country creators and created account on them. One got rejected(my bad luck) and other has the AI bot screwing with me. It kept asking for my documents again and again. I reached our to their support and they resolved my issue in under an hour. AN HOUR( YOU SEE THIS PATREON WHEN WILL YOU GIVE ME MY CHAPTERS DATA) I have to re edit them again. Some fics are still not done but I will be posting the ones that are done for now and we will be back to normal updates for all in few days. Just this platform that I will be working on Gumroad has high fees for me(I will earn less) but I have kept the tiers price same as patreon one. If you like these fics and want to support me. You can give me a tip on Gumroad(I will only use Gumroad for receiving payments and will post advance chapters on discord). Have a nice day!]
"Madam Gao, I've brought the laborers."
Alexandra Reid stood at the edge of the muddy abyss, her cashmere coat fluttering in the wind.
"The Dragon Bone..."
She began to speak, but Madame Gao raised a withered hand, cutting her off. Gao didn't speak. She simply tilted her head slightly toward the treeline. Alexandra paused. A flicker of understanding passed between the two women. They had lived for centuries; they didn't need words to convey a warning.
'Mice.'
"I see," Alexandra smiled, though her eyes remained cold. "The power of the younger generation is... persistent."
She signaled to a tactical commander standing in the shadows. He leaned in close.
"Prepare fire support," Alexandra whispered. "Wait for my command. When they commit, we bury them."
Below them, the excavation continued. The ragged laborers dug with desperate rhythm, unearthing the massive, fossilized ribs of a beast that had died before humanity learned to speak.
Headlights cut through the darkness as more luxury sedans arrived. The remaining leaders of The Hand were gathering. Sowanda, the African warlord, stepped out of a vehicle. He adjusted his white suit, his face grim. Murakami, the Japanese recluse, stood silently sharpening a blade. Fongji, the false teacher, joined them.
It was a rare sight. The Five Fingers of The Hand, united for the first time in decades.
"Sowanda," Fongji sneered, looking at the warlord. "I heard you died recently. Careless."
Sowanda's dark skin seemed to lose color. His jaw tightened.
"I am not joking, Fongji," Sowanda hissed. "That... thing... was a monster."
The other leaders looked at him. Resurrection was a tool they used often, a revolving door for immortality. But Sowanda looked shaken.
"In three hundred years, I have never been helpless," Sowanda whispered, his eyes haunted. "But this enemy... he didn't fight me. He looked at me like I was an ant. He crushed me without lifting a finger."
"I don't know his background. I don't know what he wants. But I know this: The Hand cannot fight him."
"Another Punisher?" Murakami asked, sheathing his blade.
"Worse," Sowanda replied. "The Punisher is a man with a gun. This was... Death itself."
A heavy silence fell over the group. The Hand feared very little. They controlled governments, police, and economies. But they feared the Reaper. And Sowanda had just met him.
"We need the Substance," Alexandra interrupted, her voice sharp. "If there is a new predator in New York, we need our strength restored. The bones beneath this ground will secure our immortality for another century."
She turned to the darkness of the estate grounds.
"But first... we must swat the flies."
In the shadows of the utility shed, Jessica Jones was vibrating with impatience.
"How much longer are we going to sit here?" Jessica growled. "They're having a villain reunion. Let's just punch them."
Danny scanned the area. The Five Fingers were grouped together, away from the laborers.
"Now," Danny said.
"Finally!"
Jessica launched herself forward.
CRASH.
The iron gates of the castle didn't stand a chance. Luke Cage hit them at full sprint, tearing the hinges from the stone. The metal groaned and collapsed, announcing their arrival with a thunderclap.
The Hand leaders didn't panic. They didn't even flinch. They simply turned, smiles playing on their lips.
"Kill them," Alexandra ordered calmly.
The Defenders charged.
Danny locked eyes with Fongji. The betrayal burned in his chest.
"Student," Fongji taunted, settling into a stance. "Let me teach you one last lesson."
Danny didn't speak. He moved. It was a blur of motion. Fongji was a master, but Danny was the Iron Fist. Even without summoning the Chi, his anger made him fast. He parried Fongji's strike, trapped the arm, and drove a palm into the older man's solar plexus.
Oof.
Fongji doubled over. Danny followed up with a spinning hook kick to the temple.
Thwack.
Fongji hit the ground, unconscious.
"Lesson learned," Danny muttered.
Across the courtyard, Luke Cage was having a harder time. He was a tank, but Madame Gao was a force of nature.
"Move aside, brute," Gao said, waving her hand.
BOOM.
An invisible wall of Chi slammed into Luke, sliding him backward across the gravel. Before he could regain his footing, Sowanda opened fire with a submachine gun.
RAT-TAT-TAT-TAT!
Sparks flew from Luke's chest. The bullets didn't hurt, but the impact kept him off balance. He shielded his face, gritting his teeth.
"I hate magic!" Luke yelled, trying to push forward against Gao's telekinetic pressure.
Above them, Jessica Jones leaped into the air, aiming for Alexandra.
"Sit down!" Alexandra shouted, raising a high-caliber rifle.
BANG.
A shot clipped Jessica's shoulder. She hissed, spinning in mid-air and crashing behind a stone statue for cover. She wasn't bulletproof like Luke.
"They have us pinned!" Jessica shouted.
Danny saw it. Luke was stalled. Jessica was suppressed. They needed an opening. He looked at the unconscious Fongji at his feet.
"Sorry, Sensei," Danny grunted.
He grabbed Fongji by the belt and collar, lifting the man like a sack of flour.
"Hey!" Danny shouted. "You forgot your garbage!"
He hurled Fongji's body through the air, straight at Sowanda. Sowanda's eyes widened. He stopped firing, dropping his gun to catch his fellow leader.
"Gotcha," Danny whispered.
The moment Sowanda's hands were full, Danny was there. He didn't need to run. He flowed. The golden glow of the Iron Fist illuminated the courtyard.
KABOOM.
Danny connected with Sowanda's chest. The impact was like a cannonball. Sowanda flew backward, skipping across the ground like a stone on water until he smashed into the castle wall, embedding himself in the brickwork.
Silence fell over the courtyard. Danny shook out his glowing hand, looking at the stunned Hand leaders.
"Don't worry," Danny said coldly. "I held back."
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