MARVEL UNIVERSE - 'HELL ON EARTH'
Story Arc 6 - 'Not Ever Again'
12:00a.m. – Eastern Standard Time…..the Witching Hour
Cyclops stared at himself in the mirror. He wore the red, white, and blue uniform of Captain America, and he held Cap's shield as well. He was surprised at how good the shield felt in his hand. How natural. Nothing at all like the uniform.
The uniform fit perfectly, but it was so heavy. The chainmail armor wasn't the issue. It was more psychological. The burden of the uniform brought upon the heaviness. His visor was the only part of the uniform that said 'Cyclops'.
Cap insisted he wear it. The world needed a Captain America, and in his new…condition, Cap didn't think he was that person anymore. Cyclops was his choice of replacement. There were other changes too, all of which was supposed to bring hope back to any survivors - not just in the United States, but worldwide.
Captain America had brought all of them back to Avengers Mansion for what he called, 'their first mission as the 'Final Avengers'". No ominous overtones there, huh?
Cap himself had changed. He now housed the Spirit of Vengeance. He was now the Ghost Rider, but called himself The Avenger. It was an impressive transformation. Although, instead of a motorcycle, Cap stood atop the back of a massive eagle made entirely of fire. The reins from the monster bird's beak sizzled all the way up to Cap's hands.
It was regrettable that Cap's visage reminded Cyclops of the Phoenix, but sensitivity had no place in this new world. Cyclops forced himself to get over it.
Ben Grimm jokingly referred to Cap as the 'Spirit of America', but oddly no one laughed. It was just so damned appropriate.
"Look at you," a voice came from behind.
Cyclops turned to see Hawkeye, who was now wearing a sleeker version of the Iron Man armor.
"Giving up on the bow and arrows, Hawk?" Cyclops asked.
"For now," Hawkeye nods. "Cap gave me the same speech. The world needs Iron Man to work with Captain America…"
With that, Hawkeye pauses. He looks at Cyclops and then down at his armored body.
"Can you believe this shit, Cyke?" Hawkeye laughed nervously.
Cyclops nodded absently.
"According to Cap," Hawkeye mumbled awkwardly as he looked at Cyclops in the Captain America uniform.
"Uh, the other Cap," Hawkeye corrected himself as Cyclops just nodded. "All that's missing is Thor…"
Cyclops nodded as he began to pace the room, "I understand Cap's plan. I just hope he gets back in time."
12:03a.m. – Eastern Standard Time
The entity that used to be Steve Rogers, as well as being known as Captain America, materialized at the gates of Valhalla. The entity used to be Vengeance, but now he referred to himself, and all other heroes, as 'Avenger'. The Avenger saw his longtime friend, Thor, leaning against the gates, all hope lost to him.
Thor had undertaken a huge responsibility here. Had these deceased warriors got through these gates, who knew what kind of damage they could have wrought on Asgard, and then on Earth.
The task had driven Thor to near madness. Now it was time for Thor to head back to Earth. His post would not be abandoned, though. The Avenger had brought help with him. Ben Grimm and Luke Cage would take over. Even though Cage wasn't fully healed, he refused to let Ben Grimm do this alone.
Thor notices the three materialize next to him.
"Captain?" Thor began, tearing, and on the verge of hysteria.
The Avenger put his finger to his lips. He didn't want Thor saying another word. The Asgardian literally held the gates of Hel. He deserved a reprieve.
With no time for pleasantries, Ben Grimm and Luke Cage stepped into position, and using their super strength, took the load off of Thor. The gates shook briefly as the monsters on the other side of the gate felt a momentary letdown.
It was to no avail. The two mortals would be able to handle this task, for now.
Ben Grimm nodded to The Avenger, his small gesture of wishing them all 'good luck', and then the Avenger, and Thor, were gone.
12:30a.m. – Eastern Standard Time
Nova, the Silver Surfer, and the Falcon had gone about gathering survivors. The Avenger said that it was important to have witnesses.
The Falcon was able to create a large light platform, and Nova had placed several buses onto them, while the Surfer aided the Falcon with backup energies any time the quantum bands seemed to flicker.
As they flew across several cities, Nova would swoop down, grab survivors, and place them on one of the buses. Nova thought it was an odd time to rescue survivors though. They still had the threat of Mephisto and the Vision, not to mention the legions of undead that still owned the streets. Zombies had always made Richard cringe, and now to see them all just aimlessly walking…
The sight chilled him. He reminded himself to get back to the task at hand. The three of them were to rescue as many survivors as possible, and hurry back to Avengers Mansion. Here they were. The final countdown had begun.
Arriving in front of Nova and his group, were Cyclops (who was now Captain America), Hawkeye (who was now Iron Man), Spider-Man, Dr. Strange, and the three super-villains, who wanted to help. The Avenger had vouched for them, and insisted that they be treated as Final Avengers from here on out.
The heroes stood around the wreckage of the mansion, and the rescued civilians gathered around the heroes, hoping that there would be safety among them. Other civilians refused to leave the supposed safety of the bus.
Once the Avenger arrived with Thor, the murmur of the crowd started.
"It's about to begin," the Avenger warned the heroes.
Like clockwork, Mephisto and the Vision dropped from the sky and just a few feet away from the heroes.
"Vengeance…" Mephisto hissed. "You unappreciative bastard! That host will do you no good. I already have his soul."
Mephisto held out his palm, and a throbbing white light appeared. The Avenger winced. That light was a part of him…was him. Mephisto treated it like a novelty.
"This is your one chance, Mephisto," the Avenger warned. "Stop all of this, and while I will punish you, I'll try not to make it hurt…too much."
The words and tone gave Mephisto pause. He looked at the Avenger, not doubting what he could do if given the chance. The Vision would have to handle him.
"Thank you for the professional courtesy, Vengeance," Mephisto taunted, "But I think not."
With that, Mephisto turned around and shoved the white light into the Vision's chest. The Vision smiled. It was a sight that made many of the civilians who dared to witness the event, very uncomfortable.
"This is our new hallowed ground," Mephisto began. "On these blood stained ruins we will kill the remaining heroes. The power I've just given you will be all we need…"
"Is this what I've been missing for all of these years?" the Vision beamed proudly. "I was always amazed by the power of the human spirit, and now I know why."
"I feel like I could crush an army," the Vision continued. "Yet…it makes me sad to think like that."
The Vision fell to his knees, "Sad? How am I capable of feeling anything?"
"A soul defines a human being," the Avenger says. "It's what leads us morally. It makes us responsible, gives us integrity, and most of all, it instills both faith and hope."
The Vision hangs onto every syllable of every word that the Avenger is saying. The spoken word was so beautiful when heard with purpose.
"Vision!" Mephisto growled. "It's time. Kill everyone!"
With that, a huge wave of zombies began to shamble towards the mansion, and civilians. People began to scream, and run away.
Cyclops jumped onto the roof of one of the buses.
"Falcon! Get a secondary force-field around Doctor Strange and the Avenger!" Cyclops screamed. "Nova! Whatever happens, do not let anyone, or anything interfere with what we have to do!"
Both heroes nod and rocket to their tasks.
Then Cyclops addressed the crowd. This is why they were here. The Avenger wanted all of them to have hope.
"Everyone listen to me!" he began. "It's okay to be afraid, but you have to fight to get your world back! Stand with us! Show evil that it will never win!"
With those last words spoken, Hawkeye jets overhead in his armor, and begins to blast as many zombies as he could. Cyclops managed to take out the leftovers.
There was a buzz in the crowd. The common man was beginning to believe again.
"It's Captain America," one said. "He got better!"
"Iron Man is back too!" yelled another.
The news began to circulate through the crowd. Regular human beings began to pick up sticks, while some already had weapons, and they began to fight. Side by side with their super heroes.
At that point, the Silver Surfer attacked the Vision once again, and the two began to wrestle on the ground.
A few feet away, the glowing Avenger, and Doctor Strange, both attack Mephisto. Doctor Strange puts the devil into an enchanted bubble, holding him still while the Avenger reaches in to exorcise the monster.
"Look into my eyes, Mephisto!" the Avenger yells. "Look at all of those you have wrongly damned!"
Mephisto refuses to do so, and lashes out with his hellfire. The Avenger is unfazed. Changing tactics, Mephisto takes aim at Doctor Strange. This attack has more of a desired effect.
The Sorcerer Supreme is burned, and loses his concentration, releasing Mephisto. With no other recourse, the Avenger and Mephisto douse each other in hellfire.
Meanwhile, the Silver Surfer wrestles an uninspired Vision.
"Let go of me, Silver Surfer!" the Vision demands. "I need to speak to Mephisto!"
"I am sorry, Vision," the Surfer says. "At this point I believe I have no other option but to terminate you."
The Vision knew the Surfer was serious. Turning his head ever so slightly, the Vision uses his jewel to fire a beam, obliterating the top of a building. Large pieces of debris began to rain over the crowd.
"I believe you have people to save," the Vision says matter-of-factly.
"Curse you!" the Surfer screams as he launches himself into the air to destroy the largest pieces falling off of the building.
Unencumbered, the Vision streaks toward Mephisto, and knocks the Avenger clear.
"Mephisto!" the Vision screams. "What have you done to me?"
"What are you blabbering about?" Mephisto scowls.
"This soul…" the Vision mumbles. "It hurts."
"What do you mean it hurts?" Mephisto scoffs.
"It hurts…not doing the right thing," the Vision begins. "It hurts to have betrayed my colleagues, and my friends."
The Avenger slowly picks himself off of the ground, but he watches silently as the Vision rambles.
"With no real feelings, I didn't realize how hard it is to be a genuinely, good, and caring, human being," he began. "Having faith and morals aren't a burden. They're a blessing that a soul brings to a person. They make life's challenges worth living."
Mephisto shakes his head in disgust. "You are a failure, Vision. You've let that soul taint you."
He fires his hellfire at the Vision, until he can no longer see the former hero in the flames.
"You've become all too human."
Mephisto turns to ready himself for the oncoming Avenger. Before he can launch his attack however, the Vision grabs him from behind.
"No," the Vision says remorsefully. "I can never be a human, not after making a bargain with you. Not to mention, if I was human, would I be able to do this?"
With that, the Vision rips off Mephisto's eyelids. Seeing his window of opportunity, the Avenger runs forward, forcing Mephisto to look into his eyes. Mephisto violently tries to shake his head free. This was why the Avenger brought Thor, one of the few beings who could hold the monster's head still through the hellfire.
The Avenger channeled the Spirit of Vengeance within him, and Mephisto couldn't help but to look into his glowing eyes and sees all of the evil he has done. That doesn't faze him, but the pain that all of those he has wronged, does.
Mephisto begins to scream, and his body flails. It takes the combined strength of the Avenger, the Vision, and Thor, to hold him still.
The Avenger calls out, "Captain America! Now!"
Cyclops hears his cue and steps forward, raising his visor.
"No…" Mephisto rasps in his weakened state.
Cyclops gives Mephisto a full force optic blast. He wasn't sure how the Avenger knew his blasts would have such an effect on Mephisto, but it did. Mephisto's body began to peel away.
Mephisto's agony was excruciating. His screams were terrifying and heard for miles.
The Vision does his best to hold on to Mephisto, yet the whole time he is distracted by the flood of memories of what he had done. All of this, was because he wanted be a human. Sadly though, that would never be his fate.
Slowly, painfully, and all deserved, Mephisto slowly melted out of existence. Once he was done, Cyclops dropped to his knees. Thor and Vision slowly released their grip on a tattered cape.
As quickly as they arrived, every single demon on the face of the Earth, disappeared. All of the shambling, rotting corpses, fell to the ground, dead, and resting in final peace they all deserved.
The Vision also fell to the ground, but not because he was dying. His body went limp as the demons that Mephisto had placed within him were exorcised.
The Vision then let out a heart-wrenching scream, as Captain America's soul left him as well. The Vision cried and reached out for it, but it wouldn't stop. It drifted towards its former body, which was now composed of hellfire.
It hovered next to the newly named, Avenger, perhaps saying 'goodbye' for one final time, and then zipped away into the heavens.
The Avenger calmly looked at his soul leave. He was happy it was headed upwards, and if he was capable of it, he would have smiled. Once his soul was out of sight, the Avenger no longer allowed himself the luxury of happiness. There was still so much to be avenged going forward in this new world. So many sinners who had taken advantage of the recent Hell on Earth.
With that, the Avenger grabbed the Vision by his cape, and held him down on the ground. The Vision didn't resist, he was willing to take any imprisonment that they would give him. He realized he deserved that.
Then the Vision heard a faint humming noise, and he began to feel what he believed was nausea. He turned to see Hawkeye, in the Iron Man armor, with gloves on either side of the Vision's head.
"What are you doing, Hawkeye?" the Vision asked, his voice crackling with static.
"Not sure if you knew this, Vision," Hawkeye said dryly, his usual sarcastic voice unamused at the moment. "But Iron Man has all of his armor's synced together. When I put on the armor, I saw what Carol did to you. How she tried to erase you."
The Vision tries to stand, but the fiery Avenger's grip on him is vice-like.
"Well," Hawkeye continues, "Spider-Man is actually Peter Parker, and Peter Parker is a genius. So we amped up the magnetics in these here gloves, just for you. You see, Vision, even without a soul, you had a spark of humanity in you…until you decided to make a deal with the devil. The way we see it, you don't deserve to be anything more than a machine from here on."
"No!" the Vision shouts. "You can't do that!"
"Already done, old friend," Hawkeye says somberly.
The Vision responds, "010111011011001101…"
Hawkeye walks away from the empty shell that used to be the Vision. Revenge just didn't feel like he hoped it would.
"It had to be done, Iron Man," the Avenger tells Hawkeye.
Hawkeye nods but doesn't turn around.
"I will dispose of this shell," the Avenger says.
He grabs the Vision and they both disappear in a massive fireball. The heat from the fire is tangible, but within seconds, it's gone, and in their place of the Avenger and the Vision, now stood Ben Grimm and Luke Cage.
"Friend, Grimm," Thor said hoarsely. He was sad that his friends took his place, yet he knew that he was needed here to restrain Mephisto. "The gates?"
Ben Grimm put a hand on Thor's shoulder. "Closed for business, goldilocks. Just so you know, ol' Hercules was having a beer and wanted us to tell you that he'll see you soon."
Thor was able to exhale for the first time since this whole ordeal started.
Crowds of people started cheering, crying, and just basking in their newfound lives.
There were people shouting comments, most along the lines of, "Did you see that? Captain America killed the Devil!" And so it went.
Hawkeye dragged Thor with him to go and stand next to Cyclops. It was a sight the people needed to see. The Big Three of the Avengers were together again. Hawkeye and Cyclops were giving up their identities to give the people of Earth the heroes they needed…the heroes that gave them hope.
All of the heroes gathered together and hugged. They smiled, cried, and just basked in being with each other. Random strangers, civilians who had moments earlier been fighting for their lives, joined their heroes. Hugs and tears were shared between all. Even former villains like Tiger Shark, the Rhino, and the Scorpion, were being hugged and thanked by those who had saw them fighting the monsters throughout the ordeal.
Noon, unified Earth Time - Three Weeks after the Exorcism of Mephisto
Cyclops, Hawkeye, Thor, and the rest of the remaining heroes gather at the new Avengers Compound. Today was a big day. The world would be watching. This would be the first telecast of any kind since all of the power had gone out three weeks ago.
The world's militaries and the very few remaining world leaders, through their own devices, or with help, had regained control of their individual towns, cities, and countries. Then everyone contacted the Avengers. Some wanted their assured protection, others wanted the Avengers to become a country unto themselves, so that they could fall under their leadership, and a handful of others wanted nothing to do with the Avengers at all.
"Captain America…art thou ready?" Thor asks.
Scott Summers, formerly known as Cyclops, finishes the final touches on his new red, white, and blue, uniform. Ready or not, he was about to deliver the biggest speech in his life. He wasn't addressing just Americans today. Nor was the speech just for super heroes and mutants. Today he was addressing the world.
"Ready as I'll ever be," the new Captain America nodded.
"The stars and stripes look good on you, Cap," came a voice from behind.
It was Hawkeye. He wore a slightly different version of the Iron Man armor. Instead of shiny red and yellow, it was more of a matte style. Very stylish, but still traditional Iron Man.
Cyclops smiled, "The armor looks good on you as well…Iron Man. I notice some Hawkeye traits on it though."
Hawkeye smiles, "Check this out,"
He raises his arm and a crossbow appears out of his glove. Cyclops applauds.
"I had to make sure I remembered where I came from," Hawkeye shrugged.
The two shake hands and hug.
"I don't envy you," Hawekeye says. "This next part was always one of Steve Rogers' strengths. He knew what the people needed to hear. But something tells me you'll be fine."
"Thanks," is all that Cyclops responds with.
"Aye," Thor chimes in, "It gives me a great deal of pride to say that your predecessors were my brothers. Clint Barton, you have been my brother for years, and Scott Summers, I am now proud to call you the same."
The Big Three of the Avengers step outside onto the stage.
The new Captain America stepped up to the microphone amid a crowd of thousands. They gave him a thunderous ovation just for approaching the podium. It was overwhelming for someone who had been feared and hated for most of his life, but he understood the importance of the uniform and the costume, and he would embrace it.
"Hello, everyone. My name is Scott Summers. I used to be one of the X-Men, named Cyclops. Today, I humbly come to you as your new Captain America…"
Before he could finish the word 'America', the crowd erupted into another large ovation.
"Thank you. In the rows directly in front of me you'll see the brave men and women of our armed forces, as well as all of our first responders. Words cannot express how thankful we are for all of you. Your dedication and courage will always make those of us in spandex admire you. We do what we do, because people like you…inspire us."
The crowd loses their minds, as everyone in attendance begins to swell with pride for their military, their police officers, and those in fire and rescue.
Captain America continues.
"Behind me you'll see another collection of heroes. Super heroes for lack of a better term. Like each and every one of you, each and every one of us were taken to the edge of our limits and our abilities, and dare I say even our sanity. Yet, here we stand. United, and determined to make America, as well as the rest of the world, proud again."
The crowd cheers loudly and endlessly as Cap begins to introduce all of the world's Avengers. Spider-Man, Nova, the Falcon, The Thing, Dr. Strange, and Luke Cage, each ovation blowing the roof off a topless arena.
Then Cap went on to introduce the newly appointed probationary Avengers, Tiger Shark, The Scorpion, and The Rhino. The three former villains now wear very different, much more people-friendly costumes. Cap and the former villains all expected them to get 'booed', and Cap had a few words prepared to cushion the introductions, but a funny thing happened. The new heroes were cheered and embraced for their efforts. The Rhino actually cried at that point.
Captain America threw the dice once again, having calculated the risks and having contingency words ready to go.
"As you all know, I was born a mutant. While that may have been a word many of you were not comfortable with in the past, I think we realize now that we are all the same. We are human beings. We share the same home…Earth. It gives me a great sense of pride to introduce three more Avengers, all of whom were once X-Men with me."
Captain America raises his hand towards the three surviving X-Men, and introduces Warpath, Domino, and Blink to the Avengers. Not only did they all get a rousing chorus of cheers, but Domino got her fair share of catcalls and whistles.
Next, Cap introduced the next generation of Avengers-In-Training. A young woman named Kamala Khan, who had taken the Ms. Marvel moniker, Richard Rider's younger brother, Robbie, who had salvaged Turbo's damaged armor to become the Torpedo, Cassie Lang, a legacy Avenger known as Stature, and a young magician named Nico Minoru.
"All-in-all," Cap continued, "North and South America can count 20 super powered individuals as your new Avengers," Cap said to the delight of the masses. The heroes knew that the Silver Surfer and the Avenger (Steve Rogers now the Spirit of Vengeance), were still active and patrolling the Earth, but they preferred to remain unknown.
"Now," Cap continued, "For our friends who don't live in the America's. Do not fear. Like I said earlier, we are all human beings, and we will stand together. To our friends in Africa, we understand that you have a new Black Panther leading the Wakandan army, and we can't wait to meet her. Rest assured you are safe on her watch."
"To our friends in the United Kingdom, you are now under the watchful eye of the armored, Knights of the Round Table. Leave it to Captain Britain and Tony Stark to have a contingency plan for you. We look forward to meeting each and every one of those knights as well."
Captain America took a breath as he looked down at his notes. This would be the hard part of the speech, but he would make sure that this next message was heard loud-and-clear.
"To those of you who can hear my voice in both Asia and Europe. I understand that you may be struggling under the reign of less than ideal superiors. Super powered or not, rest assured that we will be there to liberate those of you who need it. And for those of you considering yourselves dictators, you have until my speech is over to surrender, or I promise you, you will be seeing me and my friends in the very immediate future. You've been warned."
The crowd goes berserk to hear their symbol of freedom issue his warning.
"With that being said, I have to remind each and every one of you, that it hasn't even been a month since the world has faced the worst threat ever. Yet here we are, communicating our message to the entire world. Power is back up, and civilization is on the mend."
"Yes, there is still a lot of work to be done. Governments to be restored."
This elicits some boos from the crowd.
"You're our leader, Cap!" someone yells.
"The Avengers are better than any government!" another chimes in.
Captain America raises his hands to restore silence.
"I hear you. You may be right. However, my colleagues and I have agreed that we would rather be advisors to the governments. To those that already have that title, or eventually get that title, please be aware that the Avengers will be monitoring you, as so many have tried to monitor us in the past. From now on, we work together."
While his last statement could have come off as threatening, the cheers erased any doubts the heroes had in regards to how the general public would feel about them becoming a little more hands on.
"Finally," Captain America sighs. "Let me reach out to all of you who are still scared. Don't be. When there is a bump in the night, or a shadow you can't explain, don't run from it. Stand up to it. Overcome your fears. I promise you…most of the time there won't be anything there. However, on that rare occasion that there is someone, or something there, I want you to smile. Smile, because it's not you that has to be afraid."
Captain America looks at Iron Man. They nod to each other.
"From now on we will teach evil to be afraid! Because when you tell us where they are, no matter where, no matter when, no matter who. I'll be coming for them. And I'll be bringing a whole bunch of friends with me! No one ever has to be afraid again!"
Captain America brings all of the heroes to the front of the stage with him. Thor gives him the final approval.
"Say it with me, people!" Cap yells.
"AVENGERS ASSEMBLE!"
Finish – Marvel Universe, Hell on Earth