A/N: Just wanted to give a quick explanation to the guest who was nice enough to leave a comment on the last chapter. Wizards can't use their abilities to kill. They're the shield for their fellow Guardians, and can protect them (and others) from almost anything, but they can't use their abilities to kill. The other Guardians can use their abilities to kill (Ryan's had to do it, and Beckett's done it several times), and if the wizards wanted to kill someone using good old-fashioned human methods, there's nothing stopping them. But they can't use their abilities to kill for any reason. It's a fail-safe; out of all of the Guardians, the wizards are the ones whose powers could do the most damage if something went wrong or they turned to the 'dark side'. Hope this helps!
Anyway, we now return to dragon hunting, already in progress...
The God of Thunder ripped through the air at top speed, luring a pair of very angry-looking dragons away from the more population-dense sections of midtown. Thor had faced many dangerous opponents since he had first tasted battle in his youth. Some, like the Chitauri, were blind barreling beasts of rage that were little more than cannonballs on flying chariots; others, though, were smart enough that facing them one-on-one was more than enough of a challenge. And being attacked by two of such an enemy...well that was, indeed, the primary ingredient in a very bad day.
The dragons that were chasing down the God of Thunder were two such enemies.
Thor lifted his hammer over his head, pulling up in hopes that the momentum that the dragons were building up in their flight would cause them to careen right past him. No such luck; the beasts stopped directly underneath his position. A bolt of lightning struck Mjölnir; Thor tried to take advantage by directing the energy through his body to strike the dragons below him. The dragons were stunned by the blast...but they were able to shake off the attack with a speed that left the god frustrated. He took off again, doubling back toward the center of Manhattan. Thor bobbed and wove through the maze of glass and stone buildings, praying that the obstacles in the terrain would be able to at least slow down his pursuers.
The dragons caught on to Thor's plan immediately. They split up: one following Thor through the maze of skyscrapers while the other sped directly down Broadway in the hopes of overtaking the god and cutting off his escape. *That* plan worked; the Broadway dragon caught up to Thor between the towers of Rockefeller Center. The dragons flanked the golden-haired warrior, whose eyes darted around, looking for an escape route as the two giant reptiles each drew in deep breath...
THWACK! BOOM!
THWACK! BOOM!
The dragons' heads exploded within a split second of each other. Thor scanned the area, trying to get a handle on his surroundings and see if a greater danger was about to come after him. It was then that Thor saw it: the reason that his pursuers were falling from the sky instead of roasting him to a crisp...
Beneath Thor's position, Hawkeye stood alone on the roof of Stark Tower. His bow was strong and steady; an arrow with a glowing blue tip sat drawn on its rest and ready to strike at the next hint of danger. The god and the archer acknowledged each other with a curt nod...then Thor took off to check on the rest of his friends and allies.
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"You sure this is going to work?" Natasha asked nervously.
Ryan was too focused on running to vocally respond. Can't be a hundred percent sure, he projected into the mind-link, but they do seem to be drawn more to us than to other people.
Which is why we're now trying to be dragon bait? Natasha asked Ryan in her mind.
Yeah, Esposito replied. Turn left here.
They had been running down a progressively narrowing sequence of streets, hoping that the dragon was so focused on them that he wouldn't notice his shrinking surroundings. Ryan jumped onto a nearby fire escape, scaling the steel railing until he reached the top of the building. He stopped just long enough to look back and check on the location of their quarry. Big guy's taken the bait, he told his two partners. He's ground running. Head to the alley.
Copy that, agreed Esposito.
Natasha and Esposito sprinted down the alleyway, stopping only when a ten-story brick building blocked them from going any further. They drew their swords and turned toward the beast that was quickly blocking out the sun with its approach. "Here we go," whispered Natasha.
The dragon stopped at the entrance to the alleyway, letting out a roar of victory when it seemed to assume that its prey was cornered. He crept closer and closer to Natasha and Esposito, looming large over them as he crossed the length of several blocks in a few steps. The dragon reared its head back, preparing to bite down on its 'snack'...
Ryan leapt from the top of the nearby building, plunging his sword into the top of the beast's head, right between its eyes. The dragon collapsed, blocking the alley completely and almost crushing Natasha and Esposito as the head crashed to the ground. Ryan grabbed onto the dragon's ear, using it for leverage as he reached down with his free hand to help Natasha climb atop the beast's lifeless carcass. "Thanks," she told Ryan.
"No problem," said Ryan.
Esposito jumped up to join his partner and the Avenger atop the dragon's body. "We should see how the others are doing," he announced to the group.
Ryan and Natasha were in full agreement. They raced down the dragon's back, turning onto the cross street as they dropped off the tail of the beast. The trio had just gotten their bearings when a roar from the air changed their focus instantly. Natasha looked up to see another dragon bearing down on them at full speed. Natasha held onto her sword with a white-knuckle grip, unsure if she could warn her two 'partners' and get away in time. "Guys..."
Before the three warriors could strike, though, the dragon jerked upward at an awkward angle and yelped out a sound that could only be described as pained. Gravity seemed to pull the beast down by the tail, and it slammed into the ground with an enormous crash. The dragon roared in pain and anger until the Hulk jumped onto its neck, snapping it instantly. Banner then looked at his stunned friends. "You guys ok?"
Ryan nodded. The relief in his face was obvious. "You?"
"Never better," said Banner with a smile. His voice was deeper and boomed through the streets even over the hum of broken power lines and the crackle of the debris fires that were starting to pop up around them. Still, Natasha was starting to recognize the gentle undertone of the voice as unmistakably Banner's.
"How many more of these things *are* there?" asked Esposito, scanning the area as best he could for signs of another incoming attack.
Thor touched down next to the group in the middle of the quiet street. "I believe there is only one more dragon," he told the group.
"Where could it be?" asked Banner. "I've been over most of midtown..."
The god's eyes widened slightly, surprised at how...articulate the Hulk had become. "Doctor Banner?!" he asked, amazed.
Banner's eyes sparkled before turning Thor's attention back to the subject at hand. "Where's the last dragon, Thor?"
Thor opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off by two more Avengers coming in from above. "We're down to one last dragon," Stark announced to the group. "It's hiding out in the Hudson."
"So why'd you guys come get us?" asked Esposito. "Don't those suits work underwater?"
Stark and Pepper looked to each other, clearly hesitating even though no one could see their expressions behind their helmets. "You need to come with us," Thor told the group, filling in for what his flying compatriots seemed to be so hesitant to say. "I think we have saved the largest beast for last..."
A nervous knot was beginning to form in Natasha's stomach as she followed Stark and Pepper's airborne lead. ""Just how big are we talking, here?"
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Moments later, Natasha had the answer to her question. "Okay..." she exclaimed, not happy to have the answer to her question, "I can see why you guys called for backup..."
Esposito was in full agreement. "Jesus...it's like a dragon Godzilla..."
"Considering how those battles usually went," Ryan suggested, "Godzilla's probably not the best monster to compare this to."
"So how do you guys want to play this?" asked Natasha.
"We can't do much while he's underwater," said Esposito. "So we need to get his attention..." A shock of energy took care of that problem quickly, as Thor directed a bolt of lightning toward the water.
The roar that erupted from the river shook the ground underneath the heroes' feet. Everyone watched in awe as the giant red-scaled dragon rose up out of the water, roaring with a mixture of pain and fury. "We need to incapacitate it," Stark announced to the group. He targeted the beast's vulnerable head and neck areas with the repulsor beams, hoping to at least create enough of an electrical shock that it would disrupt the creature's nervous system.
No such luck; the bolts deflected "Thor, what about your lightning?" Stark asked the god.
Thor shook his head. "I hit him with all the power I could find," he insisted. "All it did was get his attention."
"Maybe if we all hit him at once?" suggested Pepper.
"Worth a shot," shrugged Stark. "On three. One...two...three."
The repulsor beams from Stark and Pepper's suits were just as useless as they had been on the first attempt, deflecting harmlessly into the waters of the river. Thor hit the dragon with a steady stream of lightning energy...which was soon joined by a second bolt of energy from a separate source.
Ryan looked around, carefully scanning the area for the second source of lighting...and almost sighed with relief when he saw Alexis and Steve at the end of an adjacent pier. He opened a wide connection with his foster kid sister and poured energy through it, allowing Alexis to amp up the voltage of her energy bolts until the dragon was able to do nothing but spasm and twitch from the sheer force of the young wizard's attack. Lex, Ryan projected into the mind-link, you have *no* idea how good it is to see you...
Alexis chuckled, even though Steve was the only one who could hear it. Oh, I think I have an idea, she teased Ryan as she considered the size of the dragon she was electrocuting. How much more do you think this big guy can take?
Ryan reached out to read the dragon's mind...and found only the barest of sentient activity. He's done. I think you can pull back now.
Every member of the group seemed to visibly relax as Alexis ended her attack and the dragon collapsed on the pier. Every member of the group...save one. "Wait!" He's not dead!" Steve called out quickly, making sure his fellow Avengers were warned of the still-imminent danger. "Someone's got to cut the head off!"
Banner was in no mood to be surprised by another ambush dragon attack. "Somebody gimme a sword," he growled. Ryan tossed his sword to the Hulk. Banner jumped into the water, causing a splash that Natasha, Ryan and Esposito had to sprint to get away from. He used the pointy scales along the spine of the unconsicous beast to climb up to the dragon's neck, speared the beast between his scales at what Banner hoped was the base of its spine, then used his massive bulk to pull through as much of the neck as the sword could penetrate.
Even with the Hulk's profoundly superhuman strength, it still took Banner several long hacks with the proportionally tiny blade before there was a clear separation between the dragon's head and neck. The entire process left the Hulk covered in blood...enough so that Banner had to wipe the excess coagulating liquid and stray tissue away from his face as the lifeless beast's carcass sank to the depths of the river. "I hope he's dead *now*," Banner insisted.
"One thing's for sure," Esposito commented quietly, "it's going to be a hell of a long time before I come back to Chelsea Piers again."
It was only then that Ryan realized where they were. "Can't argue that, man," he agreed. "Can't argue that..."
"Who's she?" asked Natasha, pointing over to the adjacent pier.
Stark answered Natasha's question as he and Pepper landed on the pier next to their friends and allies. "That's Castle's daughter."
Natasha raised an eyebrow in surprise. "Really? Guess she's a chip off the old magic wand, huh?" The surprise grew, though, when she noticed exactly *how* Steve was looking at Alexis. "Are they...?"
Stark nodded, his expression smiling and full of mischief. "For a while, apparently."
Natasha's chance to ask Stark more questions was cut short when Alexis and Steve teleported to the pier that the other were resting on. And she looked none too happy to be there. "Guys," Alexis demanded, "where's my father?"
"Empire State Building," Esposito replied. "He went after..."
Ryan and Esposito simultaneously replayed the death of the last dragon in their minds, and immediately recognized the mistake they had made. "God Alexis," Ryan exclaimed, "I'm so sorry, I completely forgot..."
"Forgot *what*?!" exclaimed Natasha, thoroughly confused.
"Wizards can't use their powers to kill," Steve exclaimed, rubbing his girlfriend's shoulders in a show of support. "Ever."
Pepper's eyes flew open, shocked as she was by the news. "So no matter how much he does to Lóng zhǔ, Lóng zhǔ won't die?" Steve, Alexis, Ryan and Esposito all shook their heads.
Steve knew immediately what needed to happen next. "We need to get to the Empire State Building," he insisted, slapping Iron Man's mask down over his face. "Now."
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