A Lucky Break.
Days had passed since Thor saved Red Hulk and Sumire. Red Hulk's healing factor saved his life and managed to make a full recovery. But it was getting more and more clear that the villains were getting to dangerous, and if they didn't do something fast, they would lose this war for sure. The leaders gathered to discuss their options, and Tony once again recommended that they just stormed the villain base and take them down. But once again he was met with resistance due to the very high risk of casualties.
"We are running out of options. The way I see it, either we go out and die fighting, or just wait here for them to come and kill us on our knees" Tony said.
"But there must be another way" Dr Light said.
"What other way? If anyone of you have any idea, even if it's useless, I would still love to hear it" Tony said in frustration.
There was silence for a while, until Captain America suddenly spoke "Hold on... the one who seem to be in charge of all those villains is called Maestro, right?".
"Yes, what of it?" Tony asked.
"What do we know about him?" Cap asked.
Tony blinked but knew that if Cap was asking these questions, there might be a good plan forming inside his head "Well from what we know, he is an alternate future version of Hulk. From a future that has been decimated by nuclear war, which ultimately turned that version of Hulk in to a cruel and tyrannical war lord who crushes any forms of resistance".
Cap thinks about this for several seconds until he finally got a face that showed he had an idea "That's it! If there is one thing I know for sure about Warlords and tyrants, it's that they have a massive amount of pride and ego. And since Maestro is a Hulk, there is no question in my mind that he refuses to let anyone claim that they are stronger than him, no true Hulk would ever give up the title as the strongest there is without a fight".
"So what are you suggesting Cap?" Tony asked, getting real interested in what Cap had to say.
"Simple, we challenge him to a duel" Cap answered.
"A duel?" Light asked confused.
Cap nods "Yes, a direct attack on him and his allies will only end in needless death. But if we call him out to a fight, there is no way he will refuse if his pride is on the line. If we play our words right, he will come charging out and defend himself".
"I get a feeling this is only the first stage of the plan" Tony assumed.
"That's right, the chances of us winning the duel is still rather slim. But if we are lucky, most of Maestro's allies will gather to watch the fight. Once the true threats have been distracted, we can send a smaller team in to Maestro's base, where they can learn as much as they can and cause as much damage as possible. If we pull this of, we would've gained a big advantage over Maestro and his allies" Cap finished explaining.
Light strokes his beard "This is a logical plan. But who would we pick as our champion? If this Maestro is really as powerful as you say, then only a hand full of our friends would be up to the challenge".
Tony smirked at that, he knew exactly what to do about that "Well Maestro is a hulk. That means there is only one person who could last long enough against him. Alright, this will be a make it or break it plan. Let's cross all our fingers that it works".
Hours later at the villain base, Maestro sat on his throne, being rather bored by the lack of actions recently. He let out a deep sigh "I figured the heroes would've tried something by now. But I guess they finally admitted that they are to weak to challenge me. Sure I always knew they could never defeat me, but it would be more fun if they at least tried".
"Oh, I am very sure they are plotting something as we speak. They always do" Red Skull said.
As if on cue, one of Maestro's alarms went of, he turned on the cameras that were monitoring the outside and soon saw Captain America standing near the base "Maestro! I am calling you out! Come out now, or hide away like a coward!".
Maestro smirked "Finally. This day just got a little more interesting".
"What could you be up to now, Captain?" Red Skull muttered in slight interest.
Outside, Cap waited calmly and as expected, Maestro came out of his base, with several of the other big villains following him. Not all villains, but the most dangerous ones at least. So far so good, now Cap had to make sure to keep Maestro's attention for as long as he possibly could, if Maestro's caught on to their plan, it would've all been for nothing.
"Captain America. Been a while since I saw one of you. Well, one who was still alive that is" Maestro said mockingly as he looked at the heroes who had come with Cap "So what is this? Are you hoping to perform one final assault on me? Hoping you can finally put me down? If that is your plan I regret to inform you that you will fail. Even your combined might can't stop me, and even if you had a slight chance against me. Well, I'm sure you've already noticed I also has some friends that are more eager to kill you all".
"So this is what you've become? After all the bragging about being the strongest there is, you will just decide to sit back as your lackeys do all the dirty work? Looks like the mighty Hulk has fallen and become a coward" Cap said calmly.
Maestro glared as he stormed up to Cap and looked down at him "Are you here to challenge me?".
"That is exactly why I am here. One on one combat against a champion of our choosing. If you are up to it, old man" Cap said.
Maestro growled, looking more than ready to kill someone "Very well. Name your champion. I will crush him, and then I will crush the rest of you".
"I don't need to name our champion. You should know him better than most" Cap said as he motions with his hand.
Soon enough, a familiar green Goliath stepped forward. Everyone knows him, after being bombarded with a massive dose of gamma radiation while saving a young man's life during an experimental bomb testing, Dr. Robert Bruce Banner was transformed into the Incredible Hulk: a green behemoth who is the living personification of rage and pure physical strength. He is the very being Maestro used to be a long time ago.
Maestro laughed loudly "He is your champion!? A younger and weaker version of me?! You really think he will be a match for me?!".
"You sure talk tough for one who hasn't even fought his own battles yet" Hulk said with a snarl.
"Don't make me laugh more than I already am. I evolved beyond you years ago. I know all your tricks" Maestro said darkly.
"You are a puny hulk. A true hulk don't need rejected Iron Man armors to fight his battles. A true Hulk fights with his strength alone. I am the strongest there is. You are the puniest there is" Hulk mocked.
As expected, Maestro was not about to take such insults laying down. Last thing one should ever say to a hulk, it's that they are puny, given how much they prides themselves on being strong. He removed his powerful armor, despite knowing the massive advantages it could've provided him. Leaving his upper body bare, Maestro cracked his knuckles and neck.
"In truth, it has been a while since I've done a purely physical battle. No one interfere! This will not take long" Maestro told his fellow villains as he and his past self got ready to fight.
Cap began walking away but stopped next to Hulk "You got this?".
"No one beats me. Not even myself" Hulk assured, Cap nodded and walked to the others.
The two Hulks starred each other down before both of them let out a roar at the same time and charged at each other. They ran for a few seconds before both leaps in to the air. They flew towards each other, ready to clash in mid air... but Maestro managed to easily overpower his younger self, crashing down in to the ground before he threw Hulk in to a large boulder. Maestro smirked at that, before Hulk breaks out of the rubble.
Hulk snarls, getting angeir, making him stronger. He would need this power boost. After this, the two take off again, charging towards each other, each preparing their right hand for a punch as they near each other. Their two punches collide with each other, causing glass nearby to shatter from the sheer force of their collision. After this, the Hulk punches Maestro in the head with his left hand. He dishes out multiple blows before one final punch sends Maestro crashing through a boulder and onto the ground. Maestro spits some blood but was still smircking. Of course, if anyone could put up a fight against him, it would be himself. But this Hulk was different compared to what Maestro used to be. Maybe this battle wouldn't be as predictible as he thought as he charges Hulk.
Hulk prepares to block, but then sees Maestro place his hand out in front of him, soon grabbing the Hulk by his head. He slammed his younger self into the ground, then slamed him in to the ground several times, crushing the dirth below them. Maestro then began to lift the Hulk and tossed him through another boulder. Hulk crashed through multiple stone walls before stopping, but was then charged at by Maestro, who began punching him several times, showing he was indeed stronger than Hulk currently was before slaming him in to the ground again.
Maestro then leaps upward into the air and aims a blow downward towards Hulk. Hulk gets up and steps back from this, then before Maestro could attack again, Hulk delivers a powerful punch that sends Maestro flying back to where they first started to fight. Maestro got back up, shaking of some dust as Hulk was leaping towards him. Maestro smirked and leapt up as well. Punching Hulk in the gut before throwing him down and landed on his back with both his boots. He then grabbed Hulk around the neck and began to slowly break it. Hulk struggled to break free, but managed to raise a leg and stomped the ground, causing Maestro to lose balance and allowing Hulk to throw him of.
With the villain spectarors, Ganondorf rubbed his chin "Impressive show of raw physical might. Few in my world would ever be able to match them in that area".
"Bah, I could take both of them easily" Bowser boasts.
"Then maybe you will get the chance later" Red Skull said as he watched the fight. But his keen mind suspected this whole duel was nothing more than a distraction. Not that he was worried, he didn't keep his suspicions to himself.
While the battle outside raged on, a small team of heroes managed to get inside the enemy base with the help of a portal. The team was made out of Lucina, Tifa, Dr Strange and Wolverine. There was no time for words, everyone knew what they needed to do. Find out as much as they could and then plant bombs that could damage the base enough to give them a fighting chance in the future. With that everyone rushed through different hallways, being told to stay in contact in case something goes wrong. They had only one shot at this, and they couldn't afford to miss.
Tifa was hurrying through the hallways. But then she heard a sound that made her stop "Hello there..." She turned around and saw Carnage crawling across the roof "You look familiar... ah yes, you are the girl I smelled a while back. The one who managed to get away. How fitting I should catch you here again".
Tifa glared, she remembered that monster, the monster Alucard managed to save her from. But he was not here now, so she had no other choice but to fight "Get out of my way, or I will crush you".
Carnage chuckled darkly "Oh I would love to see you try!".
Tifa had to duck as Carnage dashed towards her. Had she been one second slower, she would've lost her head. She turned around as Carnage attacked her again with his claws. She leaned back and managed to deliver a kick to his gut which sent him back. Carnage only laughed like the maniac he was as he jumped right back in. Tifa avoided his attacks but it was not easy. Suddenly she felt her leg being grabbed.
"Gotcha!" Carnage said before before tossing Tifa through some glass, making her land in another larger room. She gasped as she rolled to the side to avoid Carnage landing on her "Playing hard to get! I love it when they try to fight back!".
Tifa got up as she was ready to continue fighting, only for Carnage to lash out with some sharp tentacles. Tifa avoided them the best she could, but one wrapped around her leg and began dragging her across the floor as Carnage laughed and proceeded to swing her around and slam her back in to the ground. Tifa spat out some blood before shoots a barrage of blood spikes out of his chest. Tifa felt like she was trying to dodge bullets, which she had done before, but some of the spikes hit her in the leg. She cried out in pain and quickly tore them out.
But after she did, Carnage landed on her, grabbing her by the neck "I'm going to paint you red! I bet you will look even more beautiful then!".
Tifa struggles to catch her breath as Carnage lifted her up by the neck. But she glared at him before grabbing his arm and kneed him in the face. She then managed to punch him in the jaw, hard enough to break it. She then let out a battle cry as she punched him square in the chest, sending him flying in to a wall, shattering it, and the resulting shock wave made flammable materials irrupt, making the sprinklers turn on. Tifa's blood hit the floor, being washed of by the water as she was catching her breath.
But then she suddenly heard something... sounded like singing "It's raining, you're bleeding, CARNAGE IS STARVING!".
Roaring, Carnage stretches his tendrils to great proportions and surrounds Tifa with hand-like tentacles. Before she could move, she was forcefully pinned down as Carnage landed on top of her. He laughed as he stabbed his claw in to her side, making her cry out in pain.
"I will drink your blood, while using your guts as a straw!" Carnage said darkly.
Tifa cries out as she somehow managed to overpower his tendrils and punched him of. She then unleashed a barrage of punches, at the symbiote serial killer. She continued to beat on him before punching him in to the air, jumped after him, grabbed him and then slammed him back down in to the floor. Not wanting to give him a moment to recover she beat him in to the ground with all her might, then she used some ice materia to freeze him solid, the water making it easier. She then brought her foot down and shattered him.
Tifa took only a moment to catch her breath before running away. No point in her looking for intel now. She might as well plant the bomb and then contact Dr Strange so he could send her to safety. She didn't notice that Carnage was slowly breaking free from the ice and his body began to reform.
While all that was going on. Lucina was sent back, breathing hard as she looked up at the man who was stopping her from going any further. It was Sephiroth, and he was smiling calmly at her, his long blade ready. Lucina readied herself before letting out a battle cry as she charged her new enemy, but Sephiroth successfully repelled her strikes. Lucina was a very skilled sword woman, but her skills still fell short of Sephrioth's near unrivaled skills with a blade. They entered a blade lock, with Sephiroth slowly forcing Lucina's sword to the side with only one arm. Before Lucina could properly react, Sephiroth used his free hand to slab her across the face, sending her flying a short distance.
Lucina got back up as Sephiroth slowly walked towards her "What... are you?".
"I am your despair" Sephiroth answered with his cold smile.
Lucina had to admit. He was strong. Stronger than her. She was beginning to realize this was a battle she could not win. But she didn't need to. Just like Hulk, she just had to buy enough time for her allies to complete their work. So she readied her sword again, she would hold out for as long as she needed to.
"Good, you still got some life left in you" Sephiroth said.
Lucina attacked again with quick and powerful strikes but Sephiroth easily defended himself against them before he swiftly stabbed Lucina through the shoulder. She cried out in pain and fell to her knees after Sephiroth pulled his sword out of her shoulder. She held her bleeding shoulder in pain, before she felt Sephiroth's hand lift her chin, making her look in to his cold eyes. Like looking in the eyes of death.
"You were, amusing. For a while. Take some comfort in that" Sephiroth said as he studied the brand in Lucina's eye "I am curious about what kind of blood line you hail from. Maybe I will let you live long enough to satisfy that curiosity. And maybe, I can find some use for you".
"Ever heard of personal space, bub?" Came the rough voice of Wolverine "Let the kid go, and I can promise you I won't cut of all your limbs".
Sephiroth smiled "Come and try".
Wolverine took out his claws and charged in. Sephiroth launched some strikes with his sword, but Logan managed to block them with his claws. They continued clashing baldes for a while, bothing moving so fast they appeared as blurrs. Logan's claws almost hit Sephiroth's face, but the fallen heroe managed to avoid it before kicking Logan back. As Logan looked up, Sephiroth was already attacking him again, and managed to ram Masamune in to his chest. Sephiroth lifted him up, causing Logan to slide down his sword, looking dead.
"Not such a challange after all-" Sephiroth suddenly let out a loud grunt of pain. He looked down to see three of Logan's claws in his gut "Wh-what?".
"I don't die so easily, bub!" Logan declared before he stabbed his other three claws in to Sephiroth's chest, finally making him throw him of his blade.
Sephiroth coughed up some blood, so Logan was like Cloud, being able to take several stabs without dying. He had to admit, it was foolish of him to expect that his enemy would die from only one stab. Looks like he underestimated Logan, a mistake he would make sure to avoid repeating.
"Impressive... few has ever been able to injure me like this" Sephiroth said through a bloody smile.
Logan walked up to Lucina and helped her up as she held her sword "Doc, it's done, get us out of here".
A magic portal opened up behind them, and the two heroes walked through it.
Sephiroth smiled as he watched Lucina fade from view "I will see you again soon...".
Outside the base, Maestro and Hulk had been going at it this whole time. Maestro was losing patience, this battle had passed it's fun time and was now becoming annoying instead.
"Enough of this! Time to end you!" Maestro declared until explosions was heard, he turned around and saw large parts of his base go up in flames "WHAT!?".
"That's our cue then" Hulk declared before he delivered a powerful blow to the distracted Maestro, sending him flying through the walls of his base.
Cap saw magic portals open around them "Heroes, time to leave!".
Maestro leaps out of the rubble, but the heroes were gone before he could crush them. He let out an enraged roar and smashed the ground. Sephiroth walked out of the flames, dragging an injured Carnage behind him and saw Maestro's temper tantrum.
The damage was greater than they thought. Not only was large parts of the base damaged, severely weakening it, but the heroes had managed to steal vital information about Maestro's secret locations and hidden weapons, something that would grant Heroes the edge they needed to finally even the odds out a little.
Finally, the heroes had gained a true victory over the villains. The war was not lost, it had only begun.
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Tell me what you think.