"What do you think of the old man, Marcas?" asked Mohammed to Red Crosshairs. They had been guarding the entryway of the shelter for some time now, and yet nothing had happened. Truth be told, Red was more concerned with what Shadow and the others were doing.
"He's creepy," he admitted. "But he seems nice enough."
"I wonder what was in his room?" the Arabic man wondered.
"Probably his old magazines."
The two of them shuddered at that thought. As they resumed guard duty, they got bored quickly. Eventually, Red asked a question.
"What sort of patients did you treat back on Earth?"
Mohammed sighed before saying, "Well, the usual. People who suffered injuries, sicknesses, or broken bones. Hell, I was really good at at. The best doctor in the west side of Saudi Arabia, the people called me. But..."
"But what?"
"But then the Taliban came. That's when I got sick of it."
Red was going to regret this question, but he asked anyway, "Sick of what?"
BOOM! Suddenly the whole ground began to shake! As the two landed on their rears, they jumped back in shock as lava began to snake its way past them. Thankfully, it didn't end up in the shelter.
"Oh, no," whispered Red in horror. "Gauntlet, what are you doing?!"
"What is that boy?" demanded Mohammed. "He's not just a pyrokinetic kid."
"He's a vessel for the Roman god of volcanoes himself: Vulcan!" shouted Red. "If this is happening, who knows what sort of destruction is going on?!"
"What do we do?!"
Red looked around, then noticed two large boulders. "Get the girls out and help me move those rocks! We have to move them to block the lava's current!"
The sniping doctor nodded his head and rushed inside. 'Sam, don't do something you're going to regret!' thought Red with worry.
0000
5 minutes earlier...
"Now, then," cackled Rudolph. "This looks nice!" In the snare was a large reptilian like monster with long ears and bat wings for upper arms. It looked like a fresh kill. And there were two more of its kind in similar traps. "They are young!" cackled the old man. "They are tender, they are nice! Yes, they are! Eat them eat them!" His mouth watered with hunger, much to the disgust of Gauntlet, Reaper, Shadow, Raimundo and Mac.
"You do know we can cook the rabbit-bat-lizards, right?" asked Gauntlet.
"And take away the good taste," whined the old man.
"Blech," groaned Shadow a little. "No thanks. I don't like my meat raw."
"Alright. We'll eat your way. Help me tie these down and take them back to the shelter." Rudolph seemed a little disappointed, but no one cared.
"Why is it that we have to be the ones that lift the heavy crap?" Raimundo asked, heaving one of the beasts.
"A better question would be," replied Mac. "Why are we still here? Why aren't we going over to the hunters' camp?"
"Rudolph means well," commented Reaper. "Maybe he just wants something for us to eat. Regain our strength before we head out."
"I don't trust him."
"Like you don't trust us?"
Mac nodded at Reaper. The two of them still had no idea of each others' background, but the two of them didn't care. It was still survival of the fittest out here, and neither one of them will show weakness.
The group was almost a mile away from the shelter when Mac sniffed the air. "Oh, Rai, do you smoke, too?"
"No," grunted Raimundo. "That stuff is nothing but road asphalt in your lungs. It's what gave my mamma and papa cancer. Poor things."
"Oh, the irony," commented Gauntlet with sarcasm.
"Shut up, hot head."
"You know, what's a scrawny fellow like you doing with a bunch of scum like Mac?"
Raimundo shook his head. "Probably because of my business with the drug cartel."
Everyone said in surprise, "Drug cartel?"
"Yeah," said Raimundo with a smile. "Nothing but pounds and pounds of cocaine being sold to pathetic drug addicts and making big bucks. And killing people who stole from us. I liked every moment of it."
"You are horrible," groaned Gauntlet.
"So? When my folks at home found out, they said the same thing. Told them to go fuck themselves. We were poor anyway. What choice did I have?"
Gauntlet frowned in disappointment. Idiot. Then his nose flared up. "Phew, something really is smoking!" Everyone looked at him. "I'm not causing it!" Suddenly, Rudolph sniffed the air.
"They're here!" he screamed and he dropped his catch and started running.
"Rudy!" Shadow shouted, but he grunted in pain when something invisible kicked him in the gut. Raimundo grabbed his Uzi and fired wildly, but was only shooting the air. Something grabbed him by the neck and tossed him into a line of bushes. Mac pulled out his machine gun, and fired. Green fluid sprayed a patch of leaves.
"So, you can bleed!" he shouted, still firing. He heard a rustle in the trees, and opened fired. Something flew through the air and kicked him in the face, sending him flying. Now Gauntlet was left.
"I know you're out there!" he shouted, charging up his namesakes. "Come out or I'll burn you!" No response. Growling, a wave of fire generated from his body and blanked the air around him. He was careful not to hurt anyone. As he looked around, he could see in the smoke, an outline of something big charging towards him. The alien grabbed him by the arms. Big mistake. Gauntlet only needed to raise the temperature by 100 degrees, causing it to let go. He was sure he heard something roar in pain.
"I know you're there," the demigod said. "Show yourself, coward!"
The brute appeared out of thin air, finally showing itself. This one wore only a single gauntlet on one arm, chest armor, a pair of metal greaves, leather sandals, and a mask shaped like a warthog's face. A bullet hole in its leg indicated where Mac had shot it. Strapped to its belt was a menacing looking sledge hammer with fiery symbols on it.
"That hammer looks awfully familiar," said Vulcan.
"Really?" Gauntlet asked. "Where?"
"No time! Here he comes!"
The brute aimed his shoulder cannons at the young demigod, only to feel something burning hot on his shoulders. His weapons were melting! He tossed the molten metal to the ground. Pulling out his Combi-Stick spear, he aimed at the young man, but he felt a sharp sting in his wrist. A barbed whip swiped the spear and tossed it in the air. The whip belonged to the boy and he now had the spear in his possession. As he watched, the boy melted the spear in his bare hands.
"I'm Mr. Green Christmas, I'm Mr. Sun," he sang. "I'm Mr. Heat Blister, I'm Mr. Hundred and One! They call me Heat Miser; whatever I touch starts to melt in my clutch! I'm too much!"
The brute cocked his head to the side, croaking in confusion. No matter. He was ready for such an event. Although he had been warned of the dangers of the weapon he won, he wanted to put the Hammer of Hephaestus to the test now. He unsheathed the hammer and held it in both hands.
"Ooh, what are you going to do with that?" mocked Gauntlet. He was taken aback when the hammer ignited itself and its owner in a cloak of fire. The hammer's symbols glowed ruby red and sapphire blue and their flames danced along with the cloak's. Gauntlet felt anger in his heart as Vulcan started screaming in his head.
"THIEF! THIEF! THEY WOULD DARE STEAL FROM THE GODS OF OLYMPUS?!"
"What are you talking about?"
"THAT'S MY HAMMER! THEY STOLE MY HAMMER!"
Gauntlet's eyes widened. How did the hunters get their hands on such a sacred relic?! His eyes narrowed and his lips formed a sinister smirk. "Fine, alien," he roared, fire in his eyes. "If you think you can handle the Flame of Olympus, then let's see who's the true wielder of the Flame!"
The brute roared back, accepting his challenge. Gauntlet roared back, his whole body igniting. The brute slammed the ground with his hammer and a ring of fire formed around them. There was no way the others would interfere now.
"Damn!" cursed Shadow. "Sam! Just be careful of your heart condition! You know what will happen!"
"What happens?" screamed Raimundo.
"If he puts too much stress on his heart while using his powers, he'll have a fatal heart attack!"
Shadow prayed nothing horrible will happen to his friend, but now he had another concern. He knew neither demigod nor alien hunter will back down. This battle will change the landscape.
"We have to go! Trust me, this is going to get ugly!"
0000
The brute roared as he spun the hammer like a parade baton. A tornado of flames formed around him and he walked towards Gauntlet, but Gauntlet raised his arms up high and did the same thing. Charging towards each other, the two warriors clashed their weapons against each other, sending sparks of fire flying. Gauntlet's eyes glared with anger as he stared down at the alien.
"I'LL ROAST YOU!" he screamed in rage. In the back of Gauntlet's mind, something was telling him to calm down; this wasn't his anger, it was Vulcan's and it was taking hold of him! But the rage pushed those thoughts aside.
With a roar, he sent a shower of flames onto the brute, but he was now just as powerful as Gauntlet was. With a loud roar, he slammed the jungle ground multiple times. Waves made entirely of blue flames shot out of the ground and formed around him. With a roar, the brute sent them towards the young demigod. To Gauntlet's perspective, they looked like waves on a beach...a burning red hot beach. He brushed them aside like they were nothing, but felt something hot burn his face as he was sent flying. The brute slammed the hammer, making direct contact with his face. Gauntlet snarled as he rubbed his sore face. A patch of third degree burns was on his left cheek. Now he was pissed beyond words.
"RRRRROOOOOAAAAARRR!" the brute and demigod yelled.
The brute shook the hammer with both hands in the air, grunting as something shot out. As Gauntlet looked up, he saw balls of fire raining down. He had to dodge and roll to avoid getting hurt. Then he saw an opening and without mercy he punched the brute multiple times in the face and chest. With a mighty kick, the brute was sent flying. He grabbed the ground just in time to avoid touching the ring of fire. He rolled out of the way as Gauntlet struck the ground like a meteor, almost crushing him in the process. The demigod's eyes burned with rage as his own cloak of fire hissed menacingly.
"Calm down," he tried to tell himself. "If you let this up..."
"NO!" Vulcan's voice shouted, overpowering his own. "HIS KIND DISHONORED OLYMPUS! THEY ALL MUST PAY! EVERY ONE OF THEM! DOWN TO EVERY WOMAN AND CHILD!"
CRACK! That is what Gauntlet heard when the brute struck his namesakes, nearly breaking them. Now infuriated beyond any hope of recovery, the demigod grabbed the hammer, and the brute grabbed it.
"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU?!" Gauntlet shouted with rage. But as he spoke these words, he saw something. It was off in the distance, and yet, it was directly in front of him. It looked like the brute grabbing the hammer from a fresh kill. Now he knew what happened.
"You killed one of Vulcan's apprentices?" he snarled. "Murderer. HERETIC!"
Suddenly, he dropped to his knees. The brute gave him a mighty headbutt so powerful, he actually heard his skull crack. Then he pulled out a whip made of an unknown material and struck the demigod's hand away from the hammer. But as his fingers wrapped around the hammer, he felt a burning sensation. Gauntlet wrapped around his own barbed whip around the brute's hand.
"I won't let you have this!" he screamed.
The brute roared. Even with his arm wrapped in burning barbed wire, he slammed the hammer into the ground. The ring of fire was gone, but that did not mean the fight was over. The ground shook violently as a pool of volcanic fluids burst out of the ground. Wrapping his whip around a tree trunk, the brute tugged at the demigod.
"That won't happen, heretic!" screamed Gauntlet, slamming his free hand into the ground.
Fire scorched the brute's feet, making him lose balance. Suddenly, he lost his footing and fell into the fiery pit, but he still had a firm grip on the whip. He simply climbed back up onto higher ground and regained his balance. Turning around, he continued to tug on Gauntlet's whip and Gauntlet tugged back, forming a tug-o-war that will result in the loser's fiery death.
"THAT'S IT!" screamed Gauntlet. "I'M DONE PLAYING!" Igniting his fire powers, a fire slowly snaked its way from his hand towards the brute's. He was going to burn his whole arm off! It looked bad, but then the brute had a change of plans. He leaped over the lava pit and onto Gauntlet himself! Grabbing his arms, he bent them in an awkward manner, breaking them. As Gauntlet screamed in pain, the brute punched him sixteen times in the face. It was too much. His grip on the whip loosened and the brute kicked him into the lava.
In the distance, Shadow watched in horror as the brute unwrapped the demigod's whip and claimed it as his own. Third degree burns coated his left hand. Shadow began sweating and it was not just from the heat.
"I'm sorry about Sam," commented Raimundo. "He was starting to grow on me."
"No, that's not it," said Shadow with fear. "That thing's tossed him into Sam's natural habitat! He's awakened the God of Volcanoes inside Sam!"
As the brute walked over to the pit to make sure his opponent was dead, the ground began to shake violently. Suddenly, out of the pit came a giant shape of a man of lava. His beard, robes and eyes glowed reddish orange and his hands held two hammers that were similar to the brute's.
"I WILL NOT LET YOU GET AWAY WITH THIS, HERETIC!" screamed Vulcan.
Smashing the ground with his fists, more volcanoes began to sprout out from the soil, and lava began to flow.
"SAMMY" shouted a voice. "CALM DOWN BEFORE YOU BURN EVERYONE!"
Vulcan turned and saw Raimundo looking up at him.
"YOU WERE NOT PERMITTED TO SPEAK!"
A shower of lava poured out of his mouth and Shadow tackled the Spanish man out of the way just in time.
"Get out of here, Rai." he scolded. "I can handle this!"
"How can you stop that thing?!" Raimundo responded, and he wasn't referring to the brute.
"You'll see."
0000
The brute continued to slam his hammer at the god, surprisingly damaging him. Roaring, the smith god spewed a fiery breath, but the brute dodged just in time and began to use his whips to slash and cut into the god's back, tearing off huge chunks of molten flesh in the process. Can gods truly bleed? Enraged, Vulcan spun around and started tossing huge pieces of the ground at him, creating earthquakes in the process.
"MY KINGDOM!" he screamed in rage.
Suddenly, something impaled the brute straight through the chest. Raimundo panted as he kept his machete's blade in the brute's body. That didn't stop Vulcan from letting out a mighty bellow, sending a wave of fire from his body. Both the brute and Raimundo were sent flying.
"I WILL BURN ALL!" screamed Vulcan. Suddenly he felt cold. In fact, he felt so cold, he couldn't generate enough heat. That's because his body temperature had decreased to sub-zero levels. He screamed, but that stopped when he was fully encased in ice. Shadow panted as he exhausted his ice powers. Vulcan's body cracked and fell into a million pieces. A teenaged, brown haired boy wearing nothing but the torn remains of pants collapsed. Shadow grabbed Sam and held him close.
"You fool," he cursed to his unconscious body. "You let Vulcan get away with you! You could have burned us all!"
"Hey," called out Mac. "Our friend doesn't look so good."
Shadow and Reaper rushed over to Mac. The brute's body was smoking and his skin was black ashes and his armor had melted into his skin. Shadow now saw his chance. Carefully walking over to the corpse, he tried to peel the helmet off. It took some time, but he succeeded. To his disappointment, nothing was under the mask but a pile of ashes. Chucking the helmet down, he rushed over to Gauntlet.
"We'll get you back," he whispered, lifting him onto his back. "I promise."
"What about Rai?" shouted Mac, lifting up the cartel man. To Shadow's horror, he was covered in third degree burns and his clothes and shoes melted into his skin.
"Take him with us! Hurry! We have to get back to the shelter, now!"
